The Department of Justice announced a federal indictment charging former WWE star Ted DiBiase Jr. of stealing millions of dollars in federal safety-net funds intended for low-income individuals and needy families in Mississippi.
According to court documents, DiBiase, 40, and his co-conspirators John Davis, Christi Webb, Nancy New, and others, fraudulently obtained federal funds from The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP) and the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program and used them for their own personal use and benefit.
Here’s how it went down:
John Davis, who was executive director of the Mississippi Department of Human Services (MDHS), received federal funds.
Davis sub-granted the funds to two non-profits owned by Christi Webb and Nancy New.
Then, John Davis allegedly directed Webb and New to award five sham contracts to Ted DiBiase Jr.’s companies, Priceless Ventures LLC and Familiae Orientem LLC.
According to the indictment, DiBiase received millions in federal funding from MDHS for social services that he never provided to needy families in Mississippi.
Ted allegedly used the millions in funding to buy a vehicle, purchase a boat, put a down payment on a house, and ball out.
Ted DiBiase Jr. is charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and to commit theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, six counts of wire fraud, two counts of theft concerning programs receiving federal funds, and four counts of money laundering.
If convicted, DiBiase faces up to 120 years in jail on the wire fraud charges alone.
His brother, Brett DiBiase, pleaded guilty last month to one count of conspiracy to defraud the government.
In 2020, the federal government attempted to seize Ted DiBiase Jr.’s home in Mississippi after he was suspected of being a part of the Brett Favre $77 million welfare scandal.
The NFL Hall of Famer allegedly misappropriated federal funds to a volleyball program at his alma mater where his daughter played.
Favre has not been charged, however, the investigation is ongoing.
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Source: Department of Justice
