GOP lawmaker's wife charged with embezzling from local chamber of commerce

The wife of a Republican state senator in Michigan has been charged with embezzling money from a local chamber of commerce.

According to The Detroit News, "On Friday, Kellie Lauwers, who had been the treasurer of the Yale Area Chamber of Commerce, was charged with one count of embezzlement and one count of using a computer to commit a crime, according to a complaint filed in Port Huron's 72nd District Court and obtained by The Detroit News. Each charge carries a maximum penalty of 10 years behind bars. The warrant was signed by Michael Frezza, an assistant attorney general. The Michigan State Police conducted the investigation, according to the court records."

Per a police report, authorities searched Lauwers' bank accounts under warrant, and "the returned bank data revealed 11 fraudulent transactions occurring between December 2022 and July 2024. These transactions included unauthorized cash withdrawals from the chamber's Tri-County Bank account and deposits of checks drawn from the same account and made payable to Lauwers. One such transaction for $4,000, dated March 28, 2024, was mobile deposited and bore Lauwers' endorsement."

Her husband, Dan Lauwers, is the minority floor leader of the Michigan Senate Republican caucus.

Financial fraud scandals can often swiftly end the career of state political officials.

In 2019, the then-chairman of the North Carolina Republican Party, Robin Hayes, was indicted on wire fraud and money laundering charges, over a scheme by the state GOP to funnel an illegal $240,000 donation from a wealthy businessman to a state insurance commissioner. More recently, the Florida lawmaker behind the infamous "Don't Say Gay" bill pleaded guilty to a scheme to steal $150,000 from pandemic relief programs.