Federal prosecutors have launched a sweeping criminal investigation into whether senior leaders of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation defrauded donors who poured more than $90 million into the movement after the 2020 death of George Floyd.The Associated Press first reported that the Justice Department’s inquiry — led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California in Los Angeles — is examining how BLM’s leadership handled the flood of donations that came in during the height of the nationwide protests.Investigators have reportedly issued subpoenas and executed at least one search warrant in recent weeks as part of the federal inquiry.
According to the AP, the investigation began during the Biden administration but has “received renewed attention under the Trump administration,” as prosecutors revisit long-standing questions about whether the organization’s leaders or affiliated groups improperly managed or personally benefited from charitable funds.So far, no criminal charges have been filed, but the scope of the investigation appears to be widening. Federal sources told Fox News that authorities are focusing on whether BLM leaders misrepresented how donations would be used, and whether funds were diverted for personal gain.
Public filings show the foundation collected roughly $90 million in donations in 2020 — and by the end of the following fiscal year, it had posted a $9 million deficit. Federal tax disclosures from 2020 to 2022 show that only about one-third of that money — roughly $30 million — went to other charitable organizations or community initiatives.Meanwhile, $22 million was spent on “operating expenses,” including some controversial payouts to insiders.
Cullors herself stepped down from leadership in 2021 after reports revealed she had spent millions of dollars purchasing luxury properties in Los Angeles and Georgia. She denied wrongdoing, insisting that her homes were bought with personal income, not donation money.
Critics — including the very families whose tragedies fueled the organization’s rise — have accused BLM’s national arm of betrayal. Breonna Taylor’s mother, Tamika Palmer, called the group a “fraud” in a widely shared Facebook post.
In 2021, Samaria Rice, the mother of 12-year-old Tamir Rice, told the New York Post that BLM leaders “are benefiting off the blood of our loved ones, and they won’t even talk to us.”
A 2023 financial analysis backed up those accusations, estimating that just 33 percent of BLM’s donations went to any form of direct activism, while executives and consultants collected millions.
The federal probe comes after a series of scandals involving regional BLM chapters and related nonprofits. In 2024, a self-styled activist named Sir Maejor Page, who ran a spinoff called Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta, was sentenced to 42 months in prison for wire fraud and money laundering after pocketing more than $450,000 in donor funds for personal luxuries, including tailored suits and firearms.
As one federal source told Fox News, prosecutors are now seeking hard evidence — “not headlines.”
If investigators find proof of systemic fraud or self-dealing, the consequences could be devastating for the once-powerful organization that helped reshape America’s political and cultural landscape in 2020.
In the aftermath of Black Lives Matter movement, protests and riots swept the nation, causing an estimated billion dollars in damages to inner city communities, and leading to an estimated twenty deaths.
For now, the Justice Department has declined public comment. But after years of controversy, lavish spending, and shattered trust, the movement that promised transparency and justice may soon have to explain — under oath — where the money really went.
A “social justice” movement that dominated the headlines for nearly a year is now accused of being driven in part by a well-orchestrated fraud perpetrated on the American people.
The organization denied the report about the federal investigation by stating, “Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation is not a target of any federal criminal investigation. We remain committed to full transparency, accountability, and the responsible stewardship of resources dedicated to building a better future for Black communities.”
