Tiawana Brown Indicted
It looks like Councilwoman Tiawana Brown may have taken “ballin’ on a budget” a little too literally—and with your tax dollars.
Brown, a Charlotte City Council member repping District 3, has been federally indicted along with her daughters, Tijema Brown, 30, and Antionette Rouse, 33. The feds say the trio finessed over $124,000 in COVID relief funds through a series of fake PPP and EIDL loan applications between April 2020 and September 2021. The U.S. Attorney’s Office says they cooked up fake tax records and phantom businesses to get the bag.
$15K FOR A BIRTHDAY PARTY FIT FOR A FRAUD QUEEN
And what did they allegedly spend it on? Not rent. Not groceries. Not keeping a small business afloat. Nope—a luxury birthday party in 2021, reportedly costing $15,000, featuring a horse-drawn carriage and a throne, all in celebration of Queen Brown herself.
The funds were allegedly funneled into personal accounts, including those tied to Brown’s nonprofit Beauty After the Bars, an organization that ironically claims to help women get back on track after prison.
SHE AIN’T QUITTING
Brown pleaded not guilty on May 23, 2025, along with her daughters. All were released on $25,000 unsecured bonds and had to surrender their passports. If convicted, they each face up to 20 years per count.
But don’t expect her to step down. Brown says she’s not going anywhere—and she’s still running for re-election.
“I want to be clear: These allegations concern actions that took place before I took office,” she declared, noting she already repaid the $20,833 loan tied to her business, TC Collections, when she got wind of the investigation.
HISTORY REPEATS?
Let’s not forget—this isn’t her first rodeo. Brown, who made headlines as the first formerly incarcerated person on Charlotte’s City Council, served four years in federal prison for felony fraud in 1994.
And now, the same councilwoman who claimed to fight for incarcerated women is once again facing federal charges—this time for allegedly misusing funds meant to help struggling businesses during a pandemic.
So, is this redemption gone wrong—or was the throne always part of the plan?
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