Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp issued an executive order suspending Audrey Gibbons from her elected post as District 5 Glynn County School Board representative after Gibbons was implicated in a federal fraud scheme.
The decision came upon the recommendation of a review commission made up of Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr, Melissa Hodges from the Camden County School Board and Roger Moss from the Savannah-Chatham School Board.
Georgia law mandates that a review commission examine any “public official” who is indicted for a felony by a grand jury of Georgia or by the United States as to whether the legal situation would impede the individual’s ability to perform their official duties.
Gibbons has previously told The Current that she is innocent of wrongdoing in what federal prosecutors have alleged is a criminal fraud ring.
Gibbons, 64, has served on the Glynn County School Board since 2020 and was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Delaware.
She is a licensed accountant, and individuals connected to one of her clients, a car rental company named “One Way Auto,” are also named in the indictment. She told The Current that she had been hired to do bookkeeping and manage tax issues for the company and was not involved in other business issues.
Asaad Amir Hasuan, aka Dante Fredrick, headed up the fraud ring, according to the indictment. Hasuan, who was already serving a ten-year sentence for false imprisonment, is alleged to have promised to provide legal assistance, physical protection and investment opportunities to fellow inmates and their families and coerced them to transfer millions of dollars in money and property to his businesses, including One Way Auto.
Hasuan’s alleged fraud occurred while he was detained in the Glynn County Detention Center and Telfair State Prison, according to the indictment.
Federal prosecutors said that Hasuan relied on the support of his co-conspirators outside of prison who acted as money mules for the scheme. Gibbons has denied that she did that.
She added that she did not provide accounting for the company for long because they ran out of money.
Federal prosecutors say Gibbons shared three bank accounts with a woman who was an officer of the company, Penny Hunter, who has also been indicted.
No trial date has been set in the case. Gibbons’ Delaware-based lawyer requested more time to review evidence and discuss options with her client.
Gibbons “requests additional time in order for her to adequately review the discovery with her client, advise her client, and engage in plea negotiations with the Government,” her lawyer wrote in a Feb. 10 motion.
Gibbons declined to provide comment to The Current at the time of publication. The suspension is effective immediately pending the final disposition of the case or until her term expires, whichever comes first.
Her term is set to expire on Aug 13. 2027.
“We are aware of Governor Kemp’s executive order mandating Ms. Audrey Gibbons’ suspension from the Glynn County Board of Education. We have consulted with our legal team and will follow their guidance on how to proceed. We remain committed to maintaining transparency and upholding the integrity of our school board,” wrote Brittany Dozier, Public Relations Specialist for Glynn County Schools in a statement to The Current.
Jake Shore contributed reporting to this story.