Caddo commissioner, sister accused of stealing from program that fed poor kids

A Caddo Parish commissioner and his sister allegedly stole more than half a million dollars from a federally funded meal program serving low-income kids during the summer.

The pair served the meals to the community at sites including the private school where she served as principal, but allegedly inflated the number of kids they served, according to a federal indictment and district court records.

Caddo Commissioner Lynn D. Cawthorne and his sister were indicted Thursday on federal charges for allegedly stealing from a federally funded program meant to feed children in low-income areas during the summer.

Cawthorne, 51, and Belena Cawthorne-Turner, 46, both of Shreveport, are charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and seven counts of wire fraud for allegedly stealing more than $536,000 from the program.

The federal indictment is sparse on details but outlines how Cawthorne and Turner allegedly obtained money through the Summer Food Service Program for their non-profit UCAN, United Citizens and Neighborhoods Inc.

According to the indictment, Cawthorne served as UCAN's president. Turner was a director but presented herself as the executive director.

The feeding program works like this, according to the USDA:

The Summer Food Service Program is administered at the federal level by the Food and Nutrition Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

The Food and Nutrition Service decides overall program policy and publishes regulations and payment rates. State education agencies administer the summer feeding program in most states. Sponsors provide free meals to kids at a central site, such as a school. Sponsors then receive payments from USDA, through their state agencies, for the meals they serve.

Nationwide, the program estimates it serves 200 million free meals to children 18 years and under.

The pair allegedly defrauded the program like this, according to the federal indictment and district court records:

Turner allegedly filed claims for reimbursement in the summers of 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014 that "greatly inflated" the number of meals served. UCAN was then reimbursed after submitting expenses electronically to the state department of education.

Turner also applied to the department of education for advances that could be used to help pay approved expenses, according to the indictment.

Funds were then allegedly transferred from UCAN to Cawthorne Catering, the Cawthorne Corporation and other organizations affiliated with the commissioner.

The indictment also claims that Cawthorne formed Harvest Catering but listed another unidentified individual as its owner. Cawthorne and Turner made it appear as if the catering company provided services for UCAN through the meal program.

Cawthorne allegedly had UCAN transfer money to Harvest Catering and other entities. This allowed Cawthorne, Turner and other individuals not identified in the indictment to allegedly use the funds improperly.

A petition filed by the state department of education in March provides more details about where Cawthorne and Turner served the meals and the meal discrepancy counts for several of those years.

The state department of education filed a petition in March in Caddo district court to recover overpayment from UCAN, Cawthorne, Turner, Robert Williams and Dwight Jarrett. Williams and Jarrett are Orleans Parish residents, according to the petition.

"The Defendants were eligible for receipt of State and Federal funds. Payments to the Defendant were based on reimbursement of claimed expenditures and the number of meals serviced during the contractual period," according to the petition.

The state department of education provided the petition to The Times. The petition included letters sent to Turner outlining issues the state department of education claimed.

The Louisiana Department of Education became aware of the problems in 2014 after conducting a review. After conducting a review in July, the state department of education visited Dreamkeepers Academy, listed as a feeding site, because the department received notification that site was not operating at the address listed on its application.

State education staff requested records from UCAN to validate the claims for reimbursement made in July and August 2014, which revealed that UCAN told the state department of education that it served 669 meals more than it actually did, according to the petition.

The nonprofit served meals at the UCAN headquarters and the private school Dreamkeepers Academy at 9155 Linwood Avenue, according to the state department of education. Turner served as the school's principal.

The department cited UCAN for failure to maintain adequate records. The state department of education terminated UCAN's feeding contract in May 2015, and begin to send demands for repayment in August 2015.

"The unearned reimbursement amount regarding the July/August 2014 claim for reimbursement at the Dreamkeepers Academy site, and the federal funds amount received as reimbursement for all meals claimed at the UCAN headquarters site for the 2012 and 2014 program years must be repaid to the LDOE," the letter sent to Turner reads.

The petition alleges that the defendants owe about $132,000.

Cawthorne is the managing partner of The Cawthorne Financial Group, a financial advisory firm with offices in Shreveport and New Orleans.

On the commission, he represents District 6 and is board vice president. He was first sworn in in 2015 as a temporary replacement after Lindora Baker resigned. He was elected to serve a full four-year term in October 2015.

According to his commission biography, Cawthorne had been an adjunct professor at Dillard University, Southern University in New Orleans and Southern University in Shreveport teaching business courses.

His sister, Belena Cawthorne-Turner, has a background in education. She obtained a master's in education from Centenary College in 2003 and was affiliated with Dreamkeepers Academy in Shreveport. She was married to pastor Charles W. Turner Sr., who died in 2007. Cawthorne was one of his pallbearers.

Turner is listed as the principal of Dreamkeepers Academy on a LinkedIn page. City Councilman Willie Bradford spoke at the school's graduation in 2017 and thanked Turner for inviting him.

"What an Honor and Privilege to be the Speaker at Dreamkeepers Academy Graduation / Promotion Ceremony this Morning.. What a Wonderful and inspiring Ceremony.. A Big Thank to Mrs. Belena Cawthorne-Turner for the opportunity to be included in this Fantastic Day," Bradford wrote on his Facebook account. Bradford did not return a call request for comment.

Parish spokesperson Krystle Grindley said Thursday that the parish has no involvement with the Child Nutrition-Summer Food Service Program.

"We have no further comment at this time," she said in an email.

If convicted, the defendants face 20 years in prison, three years of supervised release, restitution and a $250,000 fine for each count. Cawthorne and Turner are set to make first court appearances May 2 in U.S. District Court in Shreveport.

The Louisiana State Inspector General, Caddo Parish Sheriff’s Office, FBI and the USDA's Office of Inspector General investigated the case. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander C. Van Hook and Assistant U.S. Attorney Tennille M. Gilreath are prosecuting the case.

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Correction: Caddo Parish Commissioner Lynn Cawthorne and his sister, Belena Cawthorne-Turner, are accused in federal indictments of fraud involving the U.S. Agriculture Department's Summer Food Service Program. The program initially was misidentified in this story.