Federal prosecutors say a church accused of scamming veterans out of millions of dollars' worth of benefits is stalling an investigation and should be held in contempt of court and fined.
House of Prayer, which has locations across Georgia, Texas, North Carolina and Washington state, has effectively ignored demands to produce documentation, prosecutors said in an April 4 court filing, as part of an investigation into what could be one of the largest scams targeting the military community ever.
A Military.com investigation found that the church allegedly used a complex scheme for nearly 20 years to bilk millions of dollars from veterans' military paychecks and disability pay, as well as use their GI Bill and Department of Veterans Affairs home loans to generate revenue for the church — whose leadership lived lavish lifestyles.
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The FBI raided House of Prayer locations — all located near significant Army bases — in June 2022. There were no arrests.
Two weeks ago, prosecutors filed a complaint in a Southern District of Georgia court, claiming the church has been stonewalling the investigation after being asked for documents on numerous occasions.
The church contends it can withhold documentation from the court on Fifth Amendment grounds, a defense federal prosecutors argue has absolutely no legal ground, court records show….
