Information — United States v. Richelle Holness (S.D. Fla., Dkt. 1)
Summary
This is an Information charging Richelle Holness in No. 0:23-cr-60250. It alleges that from 2019 through 2020 she was the campaign treasurer for a candidate for the Broward County Commission. Count 1, conspiracy to commit wire fraud under Title 18, Section 1349, alleges that she issued checks from the Candidate's Campaign Account, had recipients return the funds by Cash App or pay rent on a lease, and caused Campaign Treasurer Reports to list false purposes. Count 2, fraud in connection with emergency benefits under Section 1040(a)(2), concerns statements in Pandemic Unemployment Assistance claim applications. It also contains forfeiture allegations, a penalty sheet listing a maximum of 30 years' imprisonment on each count, and a waiver of an indictment form.
Summary drafted by a model from the document's text below and checked by script against that text before publication. It is a navigation aid, not a reading of what the document proves. Where AI is used
Cite this document
“Information — United States v. Richelle Holness (S.D. Fla., Dkt. 1).”
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Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 1 of 13
UM T ED STA TES D ISTRICT CO IJRT
SO UTM RN DISTRICT O F FLO R IDA
cAsENo. 23-60250-C R-BLO O M /H U N T
18U.S.C.1 1349
18U.S.C.5 1040(a)(2)
1:U.s.C.5981(a)(1)(C)
UNITED STATES OF AM ERICA F Iueo sv AT o c .,
.
V. Dec 27,2023
W CM LLE HOLNESS, ANGM E,NO* >
CG RK U % DIST ct
s,.0-oFiG .-l
v1'1,
Defendant.
/
IW O RM ATIO N
The United StatesAttorney chargesthat:
G EN ER AL ALLEG ATION S
AttimesmaterialtothisInfonnation:
A. The Cam paien
From on oraboutA pril16,2019,through on oraboutOctober31,2020,defendant
RICHELLE HOLNESS(hereinaAerreferredtoasQtHOLNESS'')wasthecampaigntreastlrerfor
acandidate(hereinafterreferred to asthetçcandidate'')seekingelection totheBroward County
Com m ission. 'rhe Broward County Com m ission is the governing body for Brow ard Cotmty,
Florida,and itconsists ofnine personsw ho areelected to four-yearterm s.
Ascampaign keaslzrer,defendantH OLNESS wasresponsible form aintaining a
bnnk account in which defendnnt HOLNESS would deposit Rmds solicited from campaign
contributorsandmakeexpenditureson behalfofthecampaign.
Expendim resare paym entsm ade by a cxm paign fortlw purpose ofinfluencing the
resultsofanelection.FloridaStatute,Section106.011(10).
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 2 of 13
During the cotlrse ofthe cnmpaign,the Candidate would solicitdonors to make
contributionssolely to beused to supporthiscampaign,and notforotherpurposes.
From on oraboutApril24,2019,through on oraboutOctober31,2020,defendant
HOLNESSandtheCandidatewerethesolesignatoriesonthebankaccount(hereinafterreferred
to asthe ttcandidate's Campaign Accotmf') authorized to pay expenditlzres on behalfofthe
Candidate.Thedepositsm ade and expenditurespaid through the Candidate'sCampaign Account
w ere transm itted in interstate com m erce via the interstate banldng system .
A s the cam paign treasurer designated by a candidate for the Broward Cotm ty
Commission,defendard H OLNESS wasrequired to fileregularreportswith theBroward County
SupelvisorofElections (hereinafterrefen'
ed to as the ûtcampaign TreasurerReports'). The
Campaign TreasurerReportswererequired to befiled on:the 10th day following theend ofeach
calendarm onth f-
rom the tim ethe cam paign treasurerw as appointed;on the 60thday im m ediately
preceding theprim ary election;and biweekly on each Friday thereafter. The inform ation provided
on the Cnm paign Treasurer Reportswasto acctlrately reflectthe contributions received by the
cnm paign and the expenditures paid by the cam paign,including the date and nnm e ofany person
or entity receiving an expendittzre from the cam paign and the purpose and am otmt of such
expenditure.
TheBroward County SupervisorofElectionsutilized VR System sto m anagetheir
website, which candidates and campaign treasurers used to file their Campaign Treasurer's
R eports, or Florida Fonn D S-D E 13s. Cam paign Treasurer's Reports for candidates for the
Brow ard County Com m ission w ere transm itted in interstate com m erce as V R System s utilized
A m azon W eb ServicesCloud Servicesaw hose servers were located outside the State ofFlorida.
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 3 of 13
8. TheCandidateoperatedarealestatebusiness(hereinafterrefen'ed to astheSçlkeal
EstateBusiness'')in Plantation,Florida.The propertyfrom which the Candidate'sRealEstate
Business operated was leased and required the m onthly paym ent of a rental fee. D efendant
HO LNESS worked fortheRealEstateBusiness.
9. Cash App isa mobilepaymentservicethatallowsusersto transferm oney using a
m obilephoneapp.
B. Pandem ic Unem plovm ent
10. On M arch 13,2020,thePresidentdeclare,dtheCOV1D-19 pandemicto lnean emergency
tmderSection5011)oftheRoertT.SG ordDisasterReliefandEmergencyAssist'
mceAct.
On M arch 27,2020,the Coronavirus Aid,Relief,and Economic Security Act
(CARES Act)was signed into law.The CARES Act created the Pandemic Unemployment
Assistance (PUA)program,which provided unemploym ent benefitsto individuals whose
em ploym enthad been eitherlostorinterrupted asa directresultofCOV ID -19.
12. The PU A progrnm w as adm inistered by the various states,including the State
of Florida, but its benefits, w hich in the State of Florida w ere called R eem ploym ent
A ssistance,w ere funded by the federal governm ent.In Floridw the Florida D epartm ent of
EconomicOpporttmity(FDEO)administeredthePUA procam .
13. In Florida, a PUA claim w as m ade online via the PUA website,
https://pua.benefits.uc.gov. The applicant entered personal identification inform ation,
including nnm e,social security num ber,em ail address,telephone num ber,and a physical
address.An applicantalso answ ered aseriesofquestionsthatenabledtheFDEO to determine
the applicant's eligibility and paym ent am ount. ineluding w hether the applicant w as
unem ployed forreasons related to the CO V 1D -19 pandem ic.
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 4 of 13
14. lf FDEO approved an application for PUA benetits, the benetits recipient
received benefitsin the fonn ofchecks,electronic flm d transfers,ordebitcards. Thechecks
and debitcardswerem ailed to thephysicaladdressthatappeared on the application.
The recipient of PUA benefits received a unique Personal Identifcation
Number(P1N)to accessthe PUA portaleach week to certify their unemployment status.
Paym ents for PU A w ere based on a seven-day period,from Sunday through Saturday.The
benefitsrecipientcertifiedevery seven dayswhetherheorshew asstilltm em ployed asadirect
resultofCOVlD-19 andwhetherhe orshew orked orearned any m oney dtlringtheseven-day
period,am ong othercertitications.
CO U NT 1
Conspiracy to C om m itW ire Fraud
(18 U.S.C.î 134%
Paragraphs 1 through 9 ofthe GeneralA llegations section of thisInform ation are
re-allegedand incorporatedby referenceasthough fully setforth herein.
From onoraboutApril16,2019,through on oraboutOctober31,2020,in Broward
Colmty,in the Southern D istrictofFlorida,and elsewhere,the defendant,
W CH ELLE H O LN ESS,
did willfully,thatis,with the intentto furtherthe objective ofthe conspiracy,and knowingly
com bine,conspire,confederate,and agree with others known and llnknown to the U nited States
Attorney,to know ingly,and w ith the intentto defraud,devise,and intend to devise,a schem e and
artiticeto defraud,and to obtain m oney and property by meansofm aterially falseand fraudulent
pretenses, representations, and prom ises, know ing that the pretenses, representations, and
prom isesw ere false and fraudulentwhen m ade.and,forthe pum ose ofexecuting the schem e and
artitice,did know ingly transm itand cause to be transm itted,by m eans ofw ire com m unication in
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 5 of 13
interstatecom merce,certain writings,signs,signals,pictures,and solmds,in violation ofTitle l8,
United StatesCode,Section 1343.
PUR PO SE A N D O BJECTW E O F TH E C O N SPIR A CY
Itwasthepurposeand objectiveoftheconspiracyforthedefendanttounlawfully
enrich herselfw ith the assistance ofher eo-conspirators through diverting cam paign funds from
the Candidate'sCam paign Accountto defendantH OLNESS'personaluse and forother illegal
PUT OSCS.
M AN N ER A N D M EA N S O F TH E C O N SPIR ACY
Them almerandm eansbywhich defendantH OLNESS and herco-conspiratorssoughtto
accomplishthepurposeand objectiveoftheconspiracyincluded,nmongothezs,thefollowing:
From in or about A ugust 2019, through in or about O ctober 2020, defendant
H O LN ESS issued checks to individuals and co-conspirators f'
rom the Candidate's Cam paign
A ccotmt.
The m em o entry of each check falsely stated that the checks were issued for
consulting,printing,data processing serdces,orsom e otherservice thatw ould m ake itappearas
ifthe expendittlre w as m ade by the cam paign for the law fulpurpose ofinfluencing the results of
an election.
DefendantH O LN ESS directed the recipientsofthe checks to cash the checksand
rettu'
n alloralm ostallofthefundstodefendantH OLNESS,by variousm eans,including by Cash
App orby issuing a check orcashier'scheck to pay the renton the lease ofthe Candidate'sreal
estate business. The ftm ds rettm aed to defendantH OLN ESS by Cash App w ere used to pay the
personalexpenses ofdefendantH O LNE SS.such asliquor,fastfood,airlinetickets,and clothing,
and notforthe lawfulpurpose of intluencing theresultsofan eled ion.
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 6 of 13
From in or aboutSeptem ber2019 through in oraboutN ovem ber2020,defendant
H O LN ESS caused Cam paign Treasurer Reports to be electronically filed w ith the Brow ard
County SupervisorofElectionsthatfalsely reflected thatthe checksdrawn on the Candidate's
Campaign Accountwere issued forconsulting,printing,dataprocessing services,orsome other
law fulpurpose ofinfluencing the results ofan election.
8. From in or about August 2019,through in or about October 2020,defendant
H OLNESS diverted campaign fundsforherpersonaluse,thepersonaluseofhercoconspirators,
orto pay the renton the lease ofthe Candidate'sRealEstate Business.
O V ER T A C TS
lnfurtheranceoftheconspiracyandtoachievetheobjectivethereot thedefendant
comm itted and caused to be comm itted in the Southern DistrictofFlorida and elsewhere,the
follow ing act,am ong others:
10. On oraboutA ugust25,2019,defendantH O LN ESS issued a check,in the am otm t
of$5,000 from theCandidate'sCampaign Accountpayableto acoconspirator'scompany (:ûCo-
conspirator15'),anddefendantHOLNESSdirectedCo-conspirator1tocashsaidcheckandretul'
n
theproceedsto defendantH OLNESS.
On oraboutA ugust26,2019,defendantH O LN ESS issued a check in the am otmt
of $1,000 from the Candidate's Campaign Accountpayable to Co-conspirator 1,and directed
Coconspirator1to cash said check and return theproceedsto defendantHOLNESS.
On oraboutSeptem ber10,2019,defendantHOLNESS caused to beelectronically
filed a Campaign Treasuzer'sReportthatfalsely listed the purpose ofa $6,000 expenditurepaid
to Co-conspirator 1 aspaid for(ûconsulting-''
6
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 7 of 13
13. On or aboutOctober27,2019,defendantHOLNESS issued a check for$3,700
from the Candidate's Campaign Accountpayable to a coconspizator Cçco-conspirator 2'').
DefendantH OLNESS directed thatCo-conspirator2 utilize$3,100topay them onthly renton the
RealEstateLeaseand to rettm l$550 by CashApp to defendantH OLNESS.
14. On oraboutOctober 30,2019,Co-conspirator2 paid the m onthly renton the Real
EstateLeaseasdirected by defendantH OLNESS afterobtaining a cashier'scheck for$3,100.
15. On oraboutOctober31,2019,Co-conspirator2 sent$550byCashApp to defendant
H O LNE SS.
On oraboutN ovem ber 12,2019,defendantH O LN E SS caused to be electronically
tiled a Cnmpaign Treasurer'sReportthatfalsely listed thepurpose ofa $3,700 expenditurepaid
to Co-conspirator2 aspaid forlçconsulting.''
17. On oraboutNovem ber 15,2019,defendantHOLNESS issued a check for$650
from the Candidate's Cam paign Accountpayable to Co-conspirator 1.DefendantH OLNESS
directed thatCo-conspirator1cash and return $600by CashApp to defendantHOLNESS.
18. On or about November 15, 2019,Co-conspirator 1 sent $600 by CashApp to
defendantH O LN E SS.
19. On or about January 11,2020,defendant H O LN ESS caused to be electronically
filed a Campaign Treasurer'sReportthatfalsely listed thepurpose ofa $650 expenditurepaid to
Co-conspirator 1 aspaid for ûtconsulting.''
On oraboutNovem ber25,2019,defendantH OLNESS issued acheck for$4,000
from theCandidate'sCampaign Accotmtpayable to an individualand directed the individualto
endorse said check. A fter the individualendorsed the check,defendant H O LNE SS cashed the
check m ade outto theindividualandretained the entire$4,000.
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 8 of 13
21. On or aboutDecem ber 10,2019,defendantH O LN ESS caused to be electronically
filed a Campaign Treasurer'sReportthatfalsely listed the purposeofa $4,000 expendittlrepaid
to the individualaspaid forGûdataprocessing services.''
22. On oraboutFebrualy 20,2020,defendantHOLNESS issued a check for$1,500
from theCandidate'sCampaignAccountpayabletoaco-conspiratorCtco-conspirator3'3.
23. On or about Februaly 21,2020,Co-conspirator 3 sent $1,425 by CashApp to
defendantH OLNESS.
On or aboutM arch 10, 2020,defendant H O LN E SS caused to be electronically
filed a Campaign Treasurer'sReportthatfalsely listed thepurpose ofa $1,500 expenditlzrepaid
to Co-conspirator3 aspaid forûçprinting.''
25. On oraboutM ay 6,2020,defendantH OLNESS issued a check for$500 from the
Candidate's Cam paign A ccountpayable to Co-conspirator3.
On oraboutM ay 7,2020,Co-conspirator 3 sent$500 by CashApp to defendant
H O LN ESS.
27. On oraboutJune9,2020,defendantHOLNESS causedtobeelectronically filed a
Campaign Treastlrer's Reportthatfalsely listed the purpose ofa $500 expenditure paid to Co-
conspirator3 aspaidforGtconsulting.''
A 1lin violation of Title 18,United States Code,Section 1349.
CO UN T 2
Fraud In C onnection W ith Em ergency B enefits
(18 U.S.C.k 1040(a)(2))
Paragraphs 10 through 15 ofthe GeneralA llegationssection ofthisInform ation are
re-alleged and incorporated by reference asthough fully setforth herein.
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 9 of 13
From on oraboutM ay 3,2020,through on oraboutAugust31,2021,in Broward
County,in the Southem DistrictofFlorida,and elsewhere,thedefendant,
R ICH E LL E H O LN ESS,
did knowingly m ake materially false,tictitious,and fraudulentstatementsand representationsin
PUA claim applications filed in the nnme ofdefendantH OLNESS,in connection with benefits
providedbytheUnitedStates,whichwereauthorizedandpaidincolmectionwithamajordisaster
declarationandan emergencydeclarationunderSection501(b)oftheRobertT.StaffordDisaster
Relief and Em ergency A ssistance A ct,thatis,that defendantH O LNE SS was unem ployed as a
directresultofCO V ID-19 and thatdefendantH O LNE SS did notw ork orearn any m oney,and as
aresult,avoucher,paym ent,m oneyandthing ofvaluewmspaidtodefendantH OLNESS tllrough
the D epartm entofLabor,an agency ofthe United States.
Allinviolation ofTitle18,UnitedStatesCode,Section 1040(a)(2).
FO R FEITUR E ALLE G A TIO N S
The allegationsofthisInformation arehereby re-alleged and by thisreferencefully
incorporated herein forthepum ose ofalleging forfeitureto theU nited StatesofAm erica ofcertain
property in w hich the defendant,R IC H ELLE H O LNE SS,hasan interest.
Upon conviction ofa violation,orconspiracy to commita violation,ofTitle 18,
United StatesCode,Section 1349,asalleged in thislnformation,thedefendantshallforfeittothe
U nited States any property, real or personal, w hich constitm es or is derived from proceeds
traceabletosuch offense,pursuanttoTitle18,UnitedStatesCode,Section 981(a)(1)(C).
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 10 of 13
A11pursuantto Title 18,United StatesCode,Section 98l(a)(1)(C)andtheproceduresset
forthin Title21,UnitedStatesCode,Section 853,asincorporatedby Title28,United StatesCode,
Section2461(c).
e
M ARK EN ZY PO W TE
UNITED STA ES ATTORNEY
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A%slsTA TUNITED STATESATTORNEY
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 11 of 13
UNITED STATES DISTRICT C O URT
SO UTH ER N DISTRICT OF FLO RIDA
UNITED STATES O F A M ER ICA CA SE N O.:
V.
CER TIFICA TE O F TRIA L A TTOR NEY
RICH ELLE H OLN ESS,
/ Superseding Case lnform ation:
Defendant. New Defendantts)(YesorNo)
CourtDivision(selectone) N um berofN ew D efendants
E1M iam i L Key W est L FTP Totalnum berofcounts
? FTL n w PB
ldo hereby certify that:
1. lhave carefully considered the allegations ofthe indictm ent,the num berofdefendants,the numberofprobable
witnessesand the legalcomplexitiesofthe Indictm ent/lnform ation attachedhereto.
Iam awarethattheinformationsupjliedonthisstatementwillberelieduponbytheJudgesofthisCou!'
tinsetting
theircalendarsandschedulingcrimlnaltrialsunderthemandateoftheSpeedyTrialAct,Title28U.S.C.j3l61.
Interpreter:(YesorNo)No
Listlanguage and/ordialect:English
Thiscasewilltake 0 daysforthepartiestotry.
Please check appropriate category and type ofoffense listed below :
(Checkonly one) (Checkonly one)
l E 0 to 5days EIPetty
11 r 6 to 10days L M inor
llI L'llto 20days L M isdemeanor
lV L 21to 60days S Felony
V n 61daysand over
HasthiscasebeenpreviouslyfiledinthisDistrictCourt?(YesorNo)NO
Ifyes,Judge CaseN o.
Hasacomplaintbeenfiledinthismatter?(YesorNo)No
Ifyes,M agistrate CaseN o.
8. DoesthiscaserelatetoapreviouslyfiledmatterinthisDistrictCourt?(YesorNo)N0
lfyes,Judge CaseN o.
9. Defendantts)infederalcustodyasof
l0. Defendantts)instatecustodyasof
11. Rule 20 from the D istrictof
l2. lsthisapotentialdeathpenaltycase?(YesorNo)No
13. Doesthiscase originate from a m atterpending in theN orthern Region ofthe U .S.Attorney'sO ffice
priortoAugust8,2014(Mag.JudgeShaniekM aynard?(YesorNo)No
14. D oesthiscase originate from a m atterpending in the CentralRegion ofthe U .S.Attorney'sOffice
priortoOctober3,2019(Mag.JudgeJaredStrauss?(YesorNo)No
D id thism atterinvolvetheparticipation oforconsultation w ith now M agistrateJudge Eduardo 1.Sanchez
during histenure attheU .S.Attorney'sOffice,which concluded on January 22,2023? NO
r.
(
l.
j
By: ..
-. j .,.
1tE K APLAN
AssistantUnited StatesA ttorney
CourtID N o. 5500030
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 12 of 13
U NITED STA TE S D ISTRIC T CO UR T
SO U TH ERN D ISTR ICT O F FLO R IDA
PEN ALTY SH EET
D efendant'sN am e: R ICH EL LE H O LN ESS
C aseN o:
Counts#:1
Conspiracv to Com m itW ire Fraud
Title 18sUnited StatesCode.Section 1349
* M ax.Penalty: 30 years'imprisonm ent
*M andatoryM in.Term oflmprisonment(ifapplicable):N/A
* M ax.Supervised R elease: 5 years
*M ax.Fine: greateroftwicethegrossgain ortwicethegrosslossor$250,000
Cotm ts#:2
Fraud in Colmection with Em ergency Benefits
Title 18,United StatesCode,Section 1040(a1(2)
* M ax.Penalty: 30 years'im prisonm ent
*M andatoryM in.Term ofImprisonment(ifapplicable):N/A
* M ax.Supervised R elease: 5 years
*M ax.Fine: greateroftwicethe grossgain ortwicethegrosslossor$250,000
RRefersonly to possible term ofincarceration,supervised releaseand fines.Itdoesnotinclude
restitution,specialassessm ents,parole term s,orforfeituresthatm ay be applicable.
Case 0:23-cr-60250-BB Document 1 Entered on FLSD Docket 12/27/2023 Page 13 of 13
AO 455tRev.01/09)W aiverofanIndic% ent
U NITED STATES D ISTRICT COURT
forthe
SouthcrnDistrictofFlorida
United StatesofAmerica )
V. ) caseNo. 23-60250-CR-BLO O M /H U N T
RICHELLE HOLNESS, )
)
)
W AIVER OF AN G DICTM ENT
IunderstandthatIhavebeen accused ofoneormoreoffensespunishableby imprisonmentformorethanone
year.1wasadvisedin open courtofmy rightsand thenatureoftheproposed chargesagainstme.
Aûerreceivingthisadvice,lwaivemy rightto prosecutionby indictmentandconsenttoprosecutionby
information.
Elate:
De#ndant:s,knature
&gzl
arlfreofdepndant'
sattorney
PrintedzMmeofdeftndant'
sattorney
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UnitedStates Macistrate Judqe
Judge'
sprintednlzneand title
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