Michelle Stent-Hilton, a 56-year-old resident of Goose Creek, has pleaded guilty to multiple federal charges related to a public corruption scheme involving grant funds in North Charleston. The charges include conspiracy to commit bribery with respect to programs receiving federal funds, honest services wire fraud, bribery with respect to programs receiving federal funds, honest services wire fraud, and money laundering.
Investigators found that Stent-Hilton worked with former North Charleston City Councilmember Jerome Sydney Heyward and others to pay kickbacks in exchange for support on her non-profit’s grant application. At the time of the offenses, Heyward was serving as the council representative for District 5.
In 2022, North Charleston awarded grants intended for non-profits working to reduce gun violence. Stent-Hilton applied through her organization DEEP SC and agreed to give Heyward 20% of any city grant money received in return for his influence and support. According to evidence, Heyward voted twice to award grant funding both to DEEP SC and another non-profit without revealing his arrangement with the organizations. After DEEP SC received $100,000 from the city, Stent-Hilton bought a $20,000 cashier’s check payable to Rose Lorenzo—a bookkeeper designated by Heyward—to conceal the transaction’s nature. Lorenzo then wired the funds from both Stent-Hilton and another non-profit into Heyward's account.
Stent-Hilton admitted that these actions were intended to disguise the payment as a legitimate transaction. She faces up to 20 years in prison, a fine of up to $250,000, restitution payments, and three years of supervised release following imprisonment. United States District Judge Richard M. Gergel accepted her plea; sentencing will follow after review of a report from the U.S. Probation Office.
The FBI Columbia Field Office and South Carolina Law Enforcement Division conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Whit Sowards and Emily Limehouse are prosecuting.
