A former state official found not guilty of Paycheck Protection Program fraud in 2023 is receiving thousands of dollars in seized assets.
Last week, U.S. District Judge Carlton Reeves dismissed the federal government’s civil lawsuit against Cerissa Neal, which sought to recover approximately $9,400 in assets allegedly gained by making false representations on PPP loan applications.
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Neal, the former executive director of the Mississippi Department of Education, was facing several charges stemming from the alleged fraud.
In September 2023, a jury declared her not guilty on all four counts. The other case against her has remained unresolved since October 2024. That’s when the jury trial in that case ended.
Nonetheless, in November, the United States Attorney filed a civil case against Neal, seeking to seize $9,400 in assets “derived, directly or indirectly,” from the alleged PPP scam.
Court papers state that a federal warrant seized the monies on February 24, 2022. The federal government did not submit a civil claim to legally seize the funds until late November.
Neal filed a request to dismiss, alleging that federal law and U.S. Attorney guidelines required the case to be filed within 150 days of seizure. Because it wasn’t, the money had to be repaid.
The former MDE commander also denied the U.S. Attorney’s accusations about when the cash was taken, stating to the court that it happened on December 17, 2021, not February 2022.
In any case, she claimed that the government failed to meet the filing deadline. “If such a date is accurate, notice guidelines would have expired as late as July 2022,” she pointed out. “In the present civil action… the government is untimely, and the complaint is time-barred.”
In a motion filed on May 29, the United States Attorney’s Office stated that the cash would be refunded.
