Mariama Wilson, Conspiracy to Commit Wire Fraud, Indiana 2024

EVANSVILLE, IN –

A former Evansville official has been sentenced to three years of probation after pleading guilty to her role in a years-long kickback scheme that resulted in a $38,000 loss to taxpayers.

Mariama Wilson, 52, was the former Pigeon Township Trustee. Her co-conspirator, Terrance Hardiman, 34, was previously sentenced to six months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to money laundering and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

The scheme involved inflating invoices for remodeling a homeless shelter and developing a food pantry. Wilson and her Director of Community Relations, William Payne, 51, approved inflated invoices submitted by Hardiman, who then paid them kickbacks totaling approximately $38,000. Hardiman would deposit checks from the Trustee’s Office, withdraw the cash, and hand-deliver it to Wilson or Payne in envelopes.

The fraudulent invoices were inflated by $1,000 to $2,000 per project, with Wilson and Payne pocketing the excess funds. In total, between February 11, 2020, and May 16, 2022, the Trustee’s Office paid Hardiman approximately $215,371 for the homeless shelter and food pantry projects. As a result of the kickback scheme, Wilson and Payne received approximately $38,000 in total, or approximately $19,000 each.

Wilson resigned as Trustee in June 2023, shortly after being charged in this case. U.S. Attorney Zachary A. Myers called the scheme a ‘slap in the face to the community’ and said it ‘damages public confidence in government.’

FBI Special Agent Herbert J. Stapleton added, ‘There are consequences when public officials illegally use public funds for their own personal benefit.’

The investigation was a collaboration between the Evansville Police Department, Vanderburgh County Sheriff’s Office, Indiana State Board of Accounts, IRS-CI, FBI, and federal prosecutors.

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