PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY, Md. (7News) — The Prince George’s County Council chair tells 7News she welcomes an audit of millions of dollars in tax money that went to a nonprofit founded by her friend.
Chair Krystal Oriadha of District 7 said the audit will show she did nothing wrong, and that all of the money is accounted for.
“I welcome the audit. I requested the audit,” Oriadha told 7News on Monday morning before a council meeting. “Because the only way to kill misinformation is with facts.”
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The controversy is over $12.8 million in tax money given in the last few years to the California nonprofit Edward Charles Foundation, which handles money for Community on the Frontline, a local nonprofit run by Oriadha’s friend Janna Parker.
Several members of the Prince George’s County Council have expressed concern to 7News about why a nonprofit run by a friend was chosen by the council chair, and in the interview with 7News, Oriadha responded to those concerns.
“We know that we handled it with integrity, and they were held to the exact same standard that every other organization is held to,” she said.
Oriadha said Parker became her friend as an adult when they worked together at a nonprofit. She said watching Parker do nonprofit work firsthand led her to trust that her friend could successfully administer grant money for projects to help the community.
“I worked with her for years at a nonprofit before I was elected, so I knew she was capable of doing this work,” Oriadha said. “It was not what some people might believe, where it’s a friend that I knew since I was a child and they just created an organization overnight and [we] gave them funding. This is someone that has a huge track record in the community and is well known for the work that she’s done.”
Oriadha and County Executive Aisha Braveboy requested last week that more than $7.6 million be returned to Prince George’s County as the situation is investigated.
Oriadha said the rest of the money was spent on things it was supposed to be spent on, such as food distribution at the Spauldings Branch library and programs for kids.
The county council is expected to soon name a new auditor who will look into the situation.
“When the new auditor comes in, the first priority will be to audit the organization, look at the funds and how they were spent so that the residents can know what I know – that these programs came to fruition,” Oriadha said.
The council was originally scheduled to vote on the new auditor, whose name is Marcel Emerson, on Monday, but it was pulled from the agenda for reasons that were not immediately clear.
This post was originally published on Fox 45 by Sinclair Media Group.
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