Georgia Rep. Sharper Charged in $13,825 Unemployment Fraud

Federal prosecutors in Georgia have charged State Representative Dexter Sharper with making false statements to obtain more than $13,800 in pandemic-related unemployment benefits, marking the third such case against a Georgia lawmaker in recent months.

Sharper, a Democrat representing House District 177 in parts of Lowndes County near Valdosta, faces one count of false statements in a case filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia. According to the indictment, Sharper applied for emergency unemployment assistance in April 2020, claiming he had not worked at his business, Dexter Sharper Party Rental, since March 13 of that year. Over the following 13 months through May 2021, he submitted 38 weekly certifications asserting that he had performed no work, earned no wages, was actively seeking employment, and had not refused any job offers.

Investigators from the FBI's Atlanta Field Office and the Georgia Office of the State Inspector General determined these claims were untrue. Records from the Georgia Department of Labor and other agencies showed Sharper was earning income from multiple sources during that period, including his annual legislative salary...