A Missouri Republican state representative has resigned days after being convicted of 22 federal charges, the majority of those offenses being linked to a $900,000 COVID-19 fraud scheme operated through medical clinics and a non-profit at the onset of the coronavirus pandemic in 2020.
State Rep. Tricia Derges stepped down Friday from her seat representing Christian County (District 140) in the Missouri House of Representatives, KOLR reported.
Her resignation came four days after she was convicted on June 28 by a federal trial jury for what prosecutors described as a nearly $900,000 COVID-19 fraud scheme, as well as a separate $200,000 fraud scheme in which she made false claims about a fake stem cell treatment marketed through her clinics in southern Missouri, and for illegally providing prescription drugs to clients of those clinics.
The 64-year-old from Nixa, Mo., was found guilty of 10 counts of wire fraud, 10 counts of distributing drugs over the internet without a valid prescription, and two counts of making false statements to a federal law enforcement agent, the Justice Department announced earlier last week.
"This is an elected official who stole money from the public, a purported humanitarian who cheated and lied to her patients, and a medical professional who illegally distributed drugs," U.S. Attorney Teresa Moore said in a statement last Tuesday. "She violated her position of trust to selfishly enrich herself at the expense of others. But a jury of her peers,...
WASHINGTON (TNND) — FBI Director Kash Patel clashed with a Democratic lawmaker Tuesday during a Senate subcommittee budget hearing, forcefully denying allegations that he drinks excessively on the...