Charlotte, N.C. — What a royal racket. A disgraced former Charlotte City Councilmember and her two daughters have all pleaded guilty to swindling more than $124,000 in taxpayer-funded COVID relief cash meant for struggling small businesses, then blowing it on a lavish lifestyle complete with horse-drawn carriages, a fancy throne and an over-the-top 50th birthday blowout.
Tiawana Brown, her daughter Tijema Brown, and her other daughter Antionette Rouse admitted to cooking up at least 15 fake loan applications for businesses that didn’t exist, complete with forged tax documents, between April 2020 and September 2021. They scored big on Economic Injury Disaster Loans and Paycheck Protection Program funds, and even tried to get the loans forgiven.
Rouse, the final family member to fold, copped to the scheme Monday in federal court and admitted pocketing more than $51,000 herself. Her sister Tijema pleaded guilty in April, while mom Tiawana, who already had a prior federal fraud conviction and did prison time, took a plea back in February.
Prosecutors say the trio didn’t just steal the money, they lived large on it. Video from Tiawana’s extravagant 50th birthday bash shows her rolling up like royalty in a horse-drawn carriage, posing on a throne, and partying it up with a massive multi-tiered cake inscribed “Tiawana,” a DJ spinning tunes, guests snapping pics, flowing drinks and plenty of dancing.
The feds say the $15,000 affair, including venue, catering, photography, a rented throne, and that fairy-tale carriage ride, was funded straight from the fraud. Louis Vuitton bags and other luxuries allegedly rounded out the haul.
And get this: Brown was already a convicted felon for fraud when Charlotte voters handed her a City Council seat. She served time in federal prison years earlier, before getting elected anyway. Now the whole crooked clan is staring down up to 20 years in prison each. Sentencing is pending.
