Former Atlanta city council member enters plea deal, admits to fraud count
Antonio Brown, former Atlanta city council member. (FOX 5 Atlanta)
ATLANTA - Former Atlanta city council member Antonio Brown has formally entered a plea deal, admitting to one count of bank fraud just a week before he was scheduled for trial.
The charges against Brown were originally filed in 2020. He was indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of wire fraud, mail fraud, bank fraud and making false statements on a bank loan application. At the time, he was one of the youngest members of city council.
FOX 5 previously reported that Brown, who was elected to represent District 3 in 2019, was accused of defrauding several financial institutions by taking out loans and making credit card purchases, federal prosecutors said, and then falsely claiming that he was the victim of identity theft and was not responsible for the charges or repaying the loans.
Records from the court show he changed his plea during a Monday hearing, pleading guilty to lying about his income for a $75,000 bank loan in 2017. In return, six charges against him were dropped and prosecutors agreed to recommend he serve 18 months on probation.
Brown faces up to 30 years in prison, his sentencing is set for April 13.