Hookers for Jesus? Whistleblower complains about human trafficking grants, report says
Federal funding to help victims of human trafficking went to less qualified organizations, according to an exclusive Reuters report on a whistleblower complaint.
The U.S. Department of Justice awarded more than $1 million to Hookers for Jesus, a Nevada nonprofit, and the Lincoln Tubman Foundation in South Carolina last year, federal funding records show.
The whistleblower complaint was filed in December by the union representing the employees. The complaint asked the inspector general to investigate if politics played a role in doling out the grant money, Reuters reports.
The complaint says the Justice Department passed over two better qualified organizations, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Palm Beach and Chicanos Por La Causa, in Phoenix, Arizona, that have ties to Democrats or oppose Trump administration policies, Reuters reports.
The complaint says the two organizations that were passed over for funding were more qualified than the two that did receive grants. In a statement to Reuters, the office in charge of the grants defended the awards, saying they were given on a merit-based system that also tried to distribute the funding to as many states as possible.
Federal records show Hookers for Jesus received a 3-year, $530,000 grant to help victims of human trafficking in the Las Vegas, Nevada, area.
Hookers for Jesus, founded by a former prostitute, said on its website, “Our vision includes providing spiritual, emotional, and physical wellness in the lives of those who have been negatively affected by human sex trafficking and the adult entertainment industry.”
Annie Lobert, the organization’s founder, told The Blaze in an interview that she had “nothing to show for my life” until a near-death experience caused by drugs shifted her entire worldview.
“If I would have known that God loved me as much as I do now, I never would have done what I done,” she said. “But at the same time, let me put it this way: I’m really glad that what happened to me happened. Because I can help people that really need help.”
The Lincoln Tubman Foundation was founded in the Charleston, South Carolina, area in 2018, charity records show. Reuters reports the group was founded “by the daughter of a prominent local Republican who supported President Donald Trump as a delegate at the 2016 convention.”
Federal grant records show the South Carolina foundation, operating as the Tri-County Human Trafficking Task Force, will get almost $550,000 over three years.
“The Task Force is recognized by the South Carolina Attorney General as the official human trafficking task force for the Tri-County area with the Chair serving on the SC Attorney General’s Statewide Human Trafficking Task Force,” the grant records note.
