Charges include wire fraud, money laundering, false statements
Federal prosecutors have charged Heidi Beirich, a former Southern Poverty Law Center official, in the Justice Department’s broader criminal case against the Alabama-based civil rights organization, her attorney said Wednesday.
The charge was filed in the government’s existing case against the SPLC in Montgomery, Alabama, according to Beirich’s lawyer, Michael Proctor. She was expected to make her initial court appearance later in the day in Riverside, California.
Court records identify the three counts against Beirich as wire fraud conspiracy, conspiracy to submit false statements to a federally insured bank, and conspiracy to commit concealment money laundering.
Attorney General Todd Blanche announced the charge at a news briefing in Washington but did not name the defendant. Proctor confirmed the person charged was Beirich, who served as the law center’s chief financial officer and is recognized as a political extremism expert.
An SPLC spokesperson had no immediate comment on Wednesday’s announcement.
The SPLC has been a frequent target of attacks by conservative critics who claim the nonprofit is politically biased. The charge against Beirich was filed in the broader federal prosecution targeting the SPLC itself in Montgomery.