JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 24-count indictment unsealed Friday that accuses U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown and her chief of staff of multiple fraud charges and other federal offenses also points to the two using family members to help funnel money from what prosecutors called a slush fund.
The indictment accused the pair of defrauding donors of $800,000 that was supposed to go to a charity helping children, One Door for Education.
Brown and Elias “Ronnie” Simmons pleaded not guilty Friday to the charges that stemmed from a months-long federal investigation into the unlicensed educational charity based in Virginia.
According to the indictment, federal investigators believe Simmons was key in funneling money from One Door to Brown's bank account, and to his own account.
DOCUMENT: Indictment of Corrine Brown, Elias Simmons
The indictment also said Brown and Simmons used close relatives -- labeled only Person B and Person C -- to help funnel the funds.
Information in the court documents points to Person B being Brown's daughter, Shantrel Brown, and Person C being Simmons' sister, Monica Simmons Isom. Prosecutors said both women profited from the alleged criminal behavior.
The indictment lists Person C as “a close family member of Ronnie Simmons and full-time teacher residing in Jacksonville.”
Isom is a fourth-grade teacher at Joseph Finegan Elementary School on Wonderwood Drive. According to the school district, Isom makes $67,305 a year and has worked for Duval County schools for 25 years.
According to the indictment, Person C was also listed as a part-time employee for Corrine Brown for more than 15 years, and that Person C received $735,000 in pay and benefits from the House of Representatives for a job that she didn't really have.
Court documents also show Simmons had access to Person C's bank account and took at least $80,000 for himself between 2009 and January 2016. The indictment said he used some of that money to pay for a boat loan, and some to make payments toward his credit card balances.
RELATED: Corrine Brown defiant after pleading not guilty to 22 federal counts
The I-TEAM went to Isom's home Monday to hear her side of the story. Her son answered the door and reached his mom by phone, but she declined to comment and asked the News4Jax crew to leave.
Isom's son said that he hadn’t seen Simmons since the indictment was unsealed, but that he did recall meeting Corrine Brown when he was younger. He said he hadn’t seen her in years.
The I-TEAM also found facts pointing to Person B in the indictment being Shantrel Brown, Corrine Brown's daughter. Person B is listed as “a close relative of Brown, and a lobbyist in the Washington, D.C. Area.”
Shantrel Brown is a partner at a Washington, D.C., lobbying firm. She has a law degree and is a former assistant state attorney.
According to the indictment, Person B received a total of $8,900 in One Door money deposited into her bank account.
The I-TEAM left a voicemail for Shantrel Brown at her office Monday.
The indictment also listed a Person A as benefiting from the charity slush fund. Person A “was a part-time employee in (Corrine) Brown's congressional office, who operated an independent consulting business.”
The I-TEAM found information that points to Person A being Jacksonville businesswoman and former Corrine Brown associate, Von Alexander, with The Alexander Agency.
The I-TEAM found that Alexander deposited $26,000 in One Door and donor money to her business account, dispersing $12,550 of it to Corrine Brown, and some to Person B, which left $4,800 in One Door money unaccounted for. That money was apparently taken in cash or deposits by Alexander.
Indictment reveals tangled web
Both Corrine Brown and Simmons are charged with participating in a conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, multiple counts of mail and wire fraud, and concealing material facts on required financial disclosure forms.
Simmons is also charged with theft of government property.
I-TEAM: Indictment: Corrine Brown, chief of staff used 'close relatives' to funnel funds
Brown is charged with obstruction of the due administration of the internal revenue laws and filing false tax returns.
If convicted on all charges, Simmons could face up to 355 years in prison and $4.75 million in fines. He declined to comment on the indictment after the hearing Friday.
Simmons' next required appearance in court will be at the trial, which is scheduled to begin Sept. 6.
If convicted on all charges, Brown could be sentenced to up to 357 years in prison and would be fined $4.8 million.
In a blog post Sunday, Brown said “my heart is heavy, but my spirit remains unbroken.”
Brown's next required appearance in court will be a July 26 status conference.
Neither Simmons nor Brown can have any contact with Carla Wiley, president of One Door for Education, or Alexander outside the presence of their attorneys.
Prosecutors claim Brown, Simmons and Wiley used money donated to the One Door charity to buy plane tickets, repair their personal cars and pay for luxury vacations in the Bahamas, Los Angeles and Miami Beach.
The indictment said more than $200,000 from the charity was used to pay for Brown to host a golf tournament at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach, to pay for lavish receptions, a luxury box at a Beyonce concert and a box when the Jacksonville Jaguars played the Washington Redskins.
The indictment indicates Simmons, who is out on bond, could have to pay $1.2 million in restitution.
His condo in Laurel, Maryland, was purchased for nearly $500,000 in 2007, but is worth about half that now.
Gene Nichols, an attorney who is not associated with the case, said it's likely Simmons will agree to a plea deal.
“The responsibility of the lawyer is to see whether or not this is actually true,” Nichols said. “And if it is true, then the lawyer's responsibility is to see if they can work out some sort of resolution with the government in order to try to save the client, and at the same time, try to broker a deal that will hopefully keep it short of a trial.”
Nichols said it will be an uphill battle for both Simmons and Brown.
Simmons convicted of violence in 2008
Simmons is no stranger to criminal charges. He was convicted of assault eight years ago in Maryland, the I-TEAM has learned.
I-TEAM: Digging into Simmons' history
Simmons, a key player in Brown's time in Congress, has worked as her chief of staff since she first went to Washington in 1993. He lives in Laurel, Maryland, and works at Brown's Washington office.
Simmons was arrested in 2008 in Maryland and pleaded guilty to second-degree assault, and was sentenced to time served (two days in jail) and two years of probation. He was also fined $500 and ordered to complete an anger management course and “all other counseling recommended.”
Based on court records, it appears there was a second assault case against Simmons that same year.
The I-TEAM also found two peace orders taken out against Simmons in 2009 in Maryland Civil Court. A peace order is similar to Florida's protective order or restraining order.
News4Jax is working to get the police report from Simmons' assault arrest to learn more details of the case.
Simmons and his attorney have not returned requests for comment Monday.