LARGO, Md, (7News) — Subpoenas have been issued to the Prince George’s County Council and a nonprofit that received more than $8.5 million in taxpayer funding, adding a new development to questions surrounding county grants.
The county’s Office of Law issued the subpoenas involving Community on the Frontline, according to county officials. The development comes less than two weeks after council members called for an independent audit of the organization and another nonprofit, Joan’s House.
Officials have not publicly detailed what documents are being sought or what prompted the subpoenas.
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Millions in grants under scrutiny
Community on the Frontline was founded by a close friend of County Council Chair Krystal Oriadha. The organization received approximately $8.6 million in county grant funding.
A separate $4 million grant to Joan’s House, which has ties to Councilmember Ed Burroughs, is also under review. As of the latest reporting, there was no confirmation that subpoenas had been issued to Joan’s House.
Councilmember Jolene Ivey has called for answers about how the grants were awarded and what happened to the money afterward.
“We all want to get to the bottom of this and to know how did the money get there, what has happened to it since then and how did it happen in the first place,” Ivey said.
How much money could be returned?
County Executive Aisha Braveboy announced Thursday that the California-based Edward Charles Foundation has returned more than $7.6 million in taxpayer money tied to Community on the Frontlines.
Braveboy said the remaining money should be returned to the county within days. The total amount ultimately recovered and how the funds were distributed remain key questions as scrutiny of the county’s grant process continues.
Of the roughly $8.6 million awarded to Community on the Frontline, nearly $764,000 had already been spent, according to reporting by The Banner. About $7.8 million remained with the Edward Charles Foundation or another organization.
What happens next?
7News has reached out to Oriadha for comment and has not received a response. Burroughs previously directed questions to Oriadha’s office.
The FBI has said it cannot confirm whether it is involved in an investigation in Prince George’s County.
The subpoenas add another step in efforts to establish how the grant funding was approved, where the money went, and whether county rules were followed. The scope of the document requests and any further findings have not yet been made public.
This post was originally published on Fox 45 by Sinclair Media Group.
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