Brett DiBiase Pleads Guilty To Conspiracy To Defraud The United States

Brett DiBiase saw his time in the ring like his famous father, but now he is in a lot more trouble than any situation he found himself in while wrestling. The former pro wrestler pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the US government.

WLBT reports that Brett DiBiase has pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States. This went down in U.S. District Court, and the federal charges are connected with Mississippi’s largest welfare embezzlement scandal in history.

Brett DiBiase previously pled guilty to two charges in Hinds County Circuit Court. He currently faces up to five years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 in addition to his sentence in state court.

DiBiase was involved in the embezzlement of millions of dollars in Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funding. He received $48,000 through his business Restore2, LLC, while using a series of fraudulent and false claims to receive the payout. He also allegedly covered up these payments by falsifying documents, invoices, books, reports and his ledgers.

Federal investigators say former Department of Human Services workers created invoices to pay Brett DiBiase for teaching classes about drug abuse. This was a front to excuse the payment, but there was no documentation in the report to show that such courses took place.

District Attorney Jody Owens commented on the situation, where federal partners were praised for their ongoing work in this case.

“I applaud our federal partners for continuing to pursue federal charges for each and every individual responsible for stealing from Mississippi’s most needy and vulnerable citizens. As I have said before, this case is far from over and both the state of Mississippi and the U.S. government will continue to pursue all those involved in this fraud.”

Brett DiBiase spent much of his pro wrestling career in FCW, WWE’s developmental territory at the time. His stint saw him wrestle there from 2008 to 2011, where he won the FCW Florida Tag Team Championship. Now, he is making headlines for a totally different reason.

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