Federal court filings paint a portrait of a public servant allegedly living a double life: one as an elected official, teacher, and small-business owner, and another as an “unemployed” worker claiming thousands in emergency aid. Prosecutors say Dexter Sharper certified 38 times that he had no job, no income, and was searching for work, even as wage records showed money flowing in from the Georgia legislature, his party rental business, and substitute teaching.
The indictment doesn’t just threaten his freedom; it strikes at public trust in a moment when pandemic programs were meant as a lifeline, not a loophole. Sharper now joins two fellow Democrats, Karen Bennett and Sharon Henderson, in a widening investigation into alleged COVID-19 relief fraud. All insist on their innocence under the law’s presumption, but their political futures may be decided long before any jury speaks.
