Brett Favre Implicated To Massive Mississippi Welfare Scandal

Brett Favre was unexpectedly named in a scandal regarding the defrauding of $70 million meant for the poorest residents of Mississippi on federal assistance programs.

This scandal is being thrown into even harsher relief right now because the city of Jackson is suffering from a lack of clean water.

Favre’s involvement was revealed when John Davis, the former Mississippi Department of Human Services Director, pleaded guilty to defrauding his state on Thursday. As part of his plea deal, there is a chance that Davis will be spilling more details on how Favre participated in the future.

What we know now is that Favre allegedly received around $8 million in these funds for different initiatives he requested. The retired football player was reportedly payed $1.1 million for speaking engagements that never occurred, and requested and received $5 million in a donation to the University of Southern Mississippi for a new volleyball court, his alma mater where his daughter was on the volleyball team. He may have also coordinated $2 million to go to a pharmaceutical company that he was also an investor for.

Favre’s attorney claimed that he has paid back the phony speaking fees and that he wasn’t aware that these other donations came in the form of welfare funds.

However, there are also incriminating texts linking Favre, as well as former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant and nonprofit manager Nancy New into being aware of the origin of the funds and the potential controversy it would cause.

In one text exchange, Favre asks New, “If you were to pay me, is there anyway the media can find out where it came from and how much?”

We’ll see how Favre and Bryant will try to explain away the texts in court, and it will likely be an uphill battle in doing so.

New ran the Mississippi Community Education Center, which seemed to manage the $5 million payout to the University of Southern Missouri. New and her son are suspected of pretending the donation was to pay a lease agreement, because of regulations preventing “brick and mortar” projects with the welfare payout they had.

Critics have noted the irony of a rich football player allegedly using state funds meant for its poorest inhabitants in this selfish way. Favre has reportedly already been questioned by the FBI earlier this month.

Mississippi is also known to be the poorest state in the country, and local activists are especially angered that this scandal continues while the predominantly-black city of Jackson still lacks clean drinking water.