Baltimore Prosecutor Maintains Innocence of Financial Crimes
BALTIMORE — Baltimore’s top prosecutor is maintaining her innocence after being indicted last week on financial crime charges.
A federal indictment accuses Marilyn Mosby of perjury and making false statements on loan applications.
Prosecutors say Mosby took advantage of the CARES Act federal coronavirus relief program by lying on an application in 2020. She self-certified that her personal income suffered because of the pandemic when in fact it had gone up, according to prosecutors.
First she applied to take $83,000 out of her city retirement plan by saying she qualified for the withdrawals under the CARES Act.
When she received the money, she used it for a down payment on a vacation home in Kissimmee, Florida, according to prosecutors. She also is accused of lying on applications for loans totaling about $900,000 to purchase the Kissimmee home and a condominium in Long Boat Key, Florida.
She did not disclose on the mortgage applications her unpaid federal taxes or a $45,000 Internal Revenue Service lien on property belonging to Mosby and her husband, prosecutors said.
“I am innocent of the charges that have been levied against me and I intend to fight with every ounce in my being,” Mosby said in a statement.
She said she offered to speak with the grand jury that indicted her to explain her innocence but the U.S. Attorney rejected her offer. She accused the U.S. Attorney of personal antagonism against her and of being politically motivated.
Mosby, 41, earned nearly a quarter-million dollars as Baltimore’s state’s attorney in 2020. She is seeking a third term. The Democratic primary election is scheduled for June 28.
She gained national recognition in 2015 when she prosecuted six police officers accused of brutality in the death of 25-year-old Baltimore resident Freddie Gray.
On Monday, Mosby’s attorney defended her by saying the financial losses she claimed to justify statements on her CARES Act application resulted from a private business she operated.
The attorney, A. Scott Bolden, declined to give specifics at a press conference. The business apparently refers to a travel business Mosby operates.
A 2020 statement from a spokesman from the state’s attorney’s office raised questions about the business but provided few answers in Mosby’s defense.
It said, “The travel company was formed to help underserved black families who don’t usually have the opportunity to travel outside of urban cities, so they can vacation at various destinations throughout the world at discount prices. This is a long-term venture, hence the reason why there are no clients and she has not received a single cent in revenue. There are no plans to operate the company while she is state’s attorney.”
On Sunday, Mosby spoke with the congregation at the Empowerment Temple AME church in Baltimore to ask for their support.
“We can certainly use your prayers,” Mosby said as she stood beside her husband, Baltimore City Council President Nick Mosby. “As a family, we are in the fight of our lives.”
Tom can be reached at [email protected].
