Former WWE star Ted DiBiase Jr. is facing decades behind bars if found guilty in a corruption scheme in which he allegedly used stolen welfare funds to buy a $1.4m mansion, a boat, a tractor, as well as a truck, prosecutors have said.
Described as the largest public corruption case in Mississippi history, the charges against DiBiase include money laundering, theft, wire fraud and conspiracy.
The scandal has already engulfed figures including his father, Ted DiBiase Sr., who was known as "The Million Dollar Man" during his own wrestling career, and NFL legend Brett Favre, with prosecutors claiming that over $77 million intended for highly vulnerable Mississippians was stolen.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Jackson, Mississippi, alleges that DiBiase’s companies obtained federal welfare funds from the Emergency Food Assistance Program and Temporary Assistance for Needy Families programs, which were then “misappropriated for their own use and benefit.”
To obtain the funds, it is alleged that a co-conspirator, John Davis, the former director of the Mississippi Department of Human Services, would order his department to transfer the funds to two nonprofit organizations, the Family Resource Center of North Mississippi and the Mississippi Community Education Center.
These were operated by two further alleged co-conspirators, Christi Webb and Nancy New, according to AL.com.
Webb and New would then award “sham contracts” under Davis' guidance to individuals and entities under the guise of providing social services, with at least five such contracts issued in 2017 and 2018 to two companies operated by DiBiase – Priceless Ventures LLC and Familiae Orientem LLC.
The services supposedly provided by these firms were never delivered, and instead, the illegally obtained funds were used by DiBiase to purchase a $1.4 million home, a $55,000 pontoon boat, a $34,000 Kubota tractor and a $40,000 truck, among other extravagances.
The jury is now set to begin deliberations, with both the prosecution and defense having rested their cases. DiBiase, 43, opted not to testify.
Alleged co-conspirator Davis has already pleaded guilty in the case, while DiBiase's brother, Brett DiBiase, also a former wrestler, has pleaded guilty in two rounds of charges relating to the case.
According to his court testimony, Davis kept pushing to ensure DiBiase secured more contracts, citing his very close, personal relationship with both Ted DiBiase Jr. and Brett DiBiase.
The court reportedly saw text messages between Davis and the DiBiase brothers including a 2018 exchange in which Brett DiBiase texted Davis: "I don't know where I stand with you … Every time I think of you I want to be with you." To which Davis responded: "I love you. I love you. I love you."
In another exchange the same year, but this time with Ted DiBiase Jr, Davis wrote: "I will freaking die for you," to which DiBiase replied: "It would be my honor to die for you bro."
Lawyers for DiBiase this week attempted to have the charges against him dismissed, reportedly arguing that the authorities had not presented enough evidence to secure a conviction, but the judge denied the request.
If found guilty, he could face a total of 185 years in prison.
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