D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb is slamming a city nonprofit and its former CEO with a lawsuit which claims they misused grant money.
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Now, the city wants those dollars back.
In a release, Schwalb’s office said the anti-violence organization Women in H.E.E.L.S. received funding in the 2022 and 2023 fiscal years for violence reduction programs in the Congress Heights neighborhood to support local women and girls.
The grant was awarded to the organization in March 2022 as part of Cure the Streets, the Office of the Attorney General’s violence reduction program. Women in H.E.E.L.S. was picked to run one of the program’s sites in Congress Heights.
Former CEO Ikeia Hardy is accused of diverting $57,302.48 in grant funds from the charity to her personal checking account.
“As soon as we become aware of this illegal conduct, we terminated the Women in H.E.E.L.S. grant. Now, we are seeking to recover the misappropriated funds and ensure that they are redirected toward public safety efforts in the District,” Schwalb wrote.
The nonprofit is also accused of failing to return more than $200,000 in unspent money after their grant agreement was terminated. Another $153,500 in funds from 2022 is being sought because, according to the lawsuit, the nonprofit never provided documentation to support the spending of that money.
In addition to seeking a return of those funds, the lawsuit also claims there was “a prohibited conflict-of-interest transaction with a consulting firm owned by a WIH managing employee,” in violation of D.C. law and the grant agreement terms.
The lawsuit states the charity lost its federal tax-exempt status on Feb. 15, 2023, and has also lost its nonprofit status with the District.
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