More federal fraud charges filed against state Sen. Robinson
New federal charges have been filed against Tennessee State Sen. Katrina Robinson, according to U.S. Attorney D. Michael Dunavant’s office.
The charges filed Tuesday are from a separate case brought forward by federal investigators in addition to an existing fraud case Rob- inson was previously indicted for in late July.
Robinson, 40, along with two others, is charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering. If convicted, Robinson and her co-conspirators each face several years in prison.
Katie Ayers, 59, and Brooke Boudreaux, 32, were named by Dunavant’s office as co-conspirators.
In July, Robinson was indicted on 48 counts of fraud — 24 counts of theft and embezzlement from government programs and 24 counts of wire fraud.
A criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court in July alleged Robinson used federal grant money issued to her forprofit nursing college, the Healthcare Institute, to buy a vehicle for her daughter, expenses related to her wedding and honeymoon, and legal fees for her divorce.
Robinson was taken into custody and released on her own recognizance. She can travel in West and Middle Tennessee without restrictions, according to court documents.
Robinson’s attorney released a statement asking West Tennessee residents to keep an open mind about the case until more evidence is presented.
What the complaint says about Robinson’s charges
According to Dunavant’s office, Robinson, Ayers, and Boudreaux allegedly conspired to use the Healthcare Institute in a scheme to defraud an unnamed individual of more than $14,000.
Investigators began pursuing the separate investigation after coming across a check for the Healthcare Institute’s primary checking account, which was made out to Boudreaux in the amount of $10,082. The memo line of the check read, “Tuition refund — LPN withdrawal.”
After further investigation, the complaint said, the three defendants “conspired to obtain $14,470 from victim R.S. for the ostensible purpose of paying Boudreaux’s tuition and expenses at THI. In reality, Boudreaux was never a student at THI, and the money was split among the conspirators.”
Robinson’s attorney, Janika White, said in a statement that Boudreaux and R.S. had a relationship with one another, and said the relationship was not disclosed in the criminal complaint.
“It is noteworthy that the complaint fails to disclose the ongoing intimate relationship between R.S. and Ms. Boudreaux. We are not aware of any victim to the crime alleged in the complaint and are surprised that the federal government would attempt to turn a small monetary transaction into a federal offense,” White wrote.
But the federal complaint does note a relationship between R.S. and Boudreaux, as did the release from Dunavant’s office.
“In an interview with FBI investigators, R.S. stated that he met Boudreaux at a bar in Las Vegas while he was there on business and the two became friends. Elsewhere in the interview, he described their relationship as ‘more than close.’ ”
Boudreaux asked R.S to pay her tuition for the Healthcare Institute in 2017, the complaint said. He then went to the for-profit nursing school and charged $14,470 on his American Express card.
R.S. recalled his doubt that Boudreaux could be admitted with a previous felony charge on her record, “but upon speaking to Robinson, he was led to believe that she would be admitted to THI, and he made the $14,470 payment for that purpose.”
One month later, according to the complaint, Boudreaux told R.S. that she was unable to attend classes at the school, and was also unable to get her tuition reimbursed.
Later, the complaint alleges, Robsinson wrote out a check to Boudreaux in the amount of $10,082 with a memo line that read “Tuition refund — LPN withdrawal.”
In the statement made on behalf of Robinson, White asked the public to remember that, “the government has been able to present their version of the events in court filings while Ms. Robinson is not able to do so. Ms. Robinson looks forward to presenting the facts to a jury of her peers and is confident that she will be found not guilty. We ask that the citizens of West Tennessee keep an open mind and to withhold judgment until all the facts have been presented.”