Overview
- A federal grand jury returned an indictment Wednesday charging Rep. Carol Ammons with eight counts of wire fraud, one count of making a false statement, and a conspiracy-to-obstruct count, while charging her husband Aaron Ammons with obstruction-related offenses.
- Prosecutors say the scheme ran from about 2017 through June 15, 2025 and included converting Friends of Carol Ammons campaign funds for personal and family use instead of legitimate committee expenses.
- The indictment alleges Ammons caused a change to a state grant that sent about $605,431 to Hood Vote Neighborhood Transformation and that her daughter, who later served as Hood Vote program director, was paid roughly $3,326 from that grant before the state flagged a conflict.
- Federal filings describe inflated payments to intermediaries who allegedly returned cash 'gifts' to Ammons, cited text messages prosecutors say reference those kickbacks, and an alleged false FBI statement on May 21, 2024 about knowledge of the grant conflict.
- The charges say Aaron Ammons worked to mislead potential witnesses on Feb. 17, 2025 and June 9, 2025 by advising coded talk and urging witnesses to 'muddy the waters,' and the indictment comes as House leaders say they are reviewing the matter for next steps including possible ethics probes.