Baltimore, Maryland’s top prosecutor was charged Thursday with perjury and making false mortgage applications.
Democrat Marilyn Mosby, 41, was indicted by a grand jury.
The indictment says Mosby submitted requests related to COVID-19 for withdrawals from retirement accounts in order to obtain funds without paying a penalty but did not meet any of the qualifications for the special distribution allowed under the CARES Act, such as experiencing adverse financial consequences from the virus from being quarantined or laid off.
The forms Mosby, who makes over $247,000 a year, signed for the withdrawals stated that she affirmed “under penalties for perjury the statements and acknowledgments made in this request.”
Mosby allegedly used the funds to make a downpayment for a vacation home in Kissimmee, Florida.
Authorities say Mosby made false statements on applications for mortgages to buy the property and another in the same state, including not disclosing she had unpaid federal taxes from multiple previous years, authorities said.
Further, just before closing on the Kissimmee home, Mosby reached a deal with a vacation home management company giving it control over the rental of the property but a week later allegedly signed a document that stipulated she maintain exclusive control over ownership of the home and land.
Mosby faces up to 70 years in federal prison if convicted of all counts.
Mosby is slated to make an initial appearance in federal court in Baltimore but the hearing has not yet been scheduled, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland.
“We will fight these charges vigorously, and I remain confident that once all the evidence is presented, that she will prevail against these bogus charges—charges that are rooted in personal, political, and racial animus five months from her election,” Mosby’s lawyer told news outlets in a statement.
Mosby read a prepared statement to reporters in Baltimore Friday, declining to take any questions.
She said Baltimore residents should know she’s committed to her job even while facing the charges.
“I also need citizens who I am blessed to serve to know that I’m innocent of the charges that have been levied against me, and I intend to fight with every ounce of energy within my being to prove my innocence,” Mosby added.
Mosby trumped incumbent Gregg Bernstein in the Democrat primary for the prosecutor position in 2014 and took office in January of the next year.
