NEWTON COUNTY – A woman accused of misappropriating ARPA funds in Newton County has officially pleaded guilty.

Christal Deshai Guthrie pled guilty to violating the racketeer influenced and corrupt organizations act (RICO) on Feb. 15 and was sentenced to 20 years, with the first eight years to be served in prison.

After the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress passed the ARPA act to aid local governments, businesses and citizens that were negatively impacted by the pandemic. Newton County received a considerable amount of federal funding, sending hundreds of thousands of dollars to the local Salvation Army.

Guthrie was hired by the Salvation Army to help facilitate funding for those in need. This included reviewing applications and verifying forms that were submitted.

According to a press release from the Newton County District Attorney’s Office, Guthrie developed a scheme with friends and associates where the associates would turn in false applications and receive money for them.

“The Defendant [Guthrie] would receive the applications, pretend to verify applications that

were known to be fraudulent, and then she would approve the applications for

Payment,” a press release stated. “Checks would subsequently be mailed to the alleged landlords, and in some cases, the fraudulent landlords would pay the Defendant a portion of the check as a kickback.”

Additionally, it was said in the press release that Guthrie approved checks for friends and family living outside of the county and outside of the state while giving them false Newton County addresses on forms to avoid getting caught. 

Many of the landlords listed lived in Michigan, where Guthrie’s boyfriend was reportedly from and where she would frequently visit.

Another instance of fraudulent activity occurred when Guthrie listed the financier of her car loan and used Salvation Army funds to pay off $4,500 off of her car loan.

The investigation conducted by the Covington Police Department (CPD) and Newton County DA’s office found that real Newton County applicants that applied for assistance were denied, and in turn, their information was used to assist the fraudulent activity.

“These Newton County residents who had applied for assistance had fallen behind on their bills because they were sick, laid off because of Covid, or were having to care for sick family members,” a press release stated. “Some victims of this scheme who had their application denied lost their residence because they could not pay their bills.”

The findings of the investigation culminated in Guthrie’s arrest in October 2022, eventually charging her with over 70 counts. Guthrie pled guilty to all 70 counts.

However, according to the press release, all counts merge legally with the RICO offense for sentencing purposes.

Guthrie’s plea was listed as a non-negotiable plea, which meant that Guthrie and the state could not agree on an appropriate sentence. The court opted to side with the state, sentencing Guthrie to 20 years with the first eight to be served in prison.

Additionally, Guthrie was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $152,700.76.

The case was and is being prosecuted by deputy chief assistant District Attorney

Jillian Hall, investigator Josh Shumate, and investigative assistant Bret Anderson.

The investigation is still ongoing regarding other individuals that may potentially be involved in the fraudulent scheme.