Federal prosecutors charged former congressional aide Christopher Southerland with stealing about 240 taxpayer-funded cellphones worth more than $150,000. (Credit: Eric Lee/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON - A former congressional aide is accused of abusing his trusted access to steal roughly 240 taxpayer-funded cellphones worth more than $150,000, shipping them to his Maryland home and selling most of them at a pawn shop, federal prosecutors say.
Former aide accused of stealing 240 government phones
Big picture view:
On Monday, the Justice Department said that Christopher Southerland, 43, of Glen Burnie, Md., was arrested Friday and charged in a federal indictment unsealed in U.S. District Court for stealing approximately 240 government cell phones, valued at over $150,000, from the U.S. House of Representatives.
According to the government’s evidence, Southerland worked as a system administrator for the House of Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure from about April 2020 until July 2023. In this role, Southerland was authorized to order cell phones for committee staff members.
From January 2023 through May 2023, Southerland then allegedly used his position to cause 240 new government cell phones to be shipped directly to his home in Maryland. During that time, there were only approximately 80 staff members on the committee. Prosecutors said that Southerland then sold over 200 of the cell phones to a nearby pawn shop.
Christopher Southerland allegedly sold phones ‘in parts’ to pawn shop
Dig deeper:
As part of the scheme, Southerland allegedly directed an employee at the pawn shop only to sell the phones "in parts" in order to bypass the House’s mobile device management software, which enables the House to remotely secure and monitor its phones. The scheme was first discovered when one of the phones that Southerland stole was sold whole on eBay to an uninvolved purchaser. When the purchaser first booted up the phone, the phone displayed a phone number for the House of Representatives Technology Service Desk.
The purchaser called that number, and House employees soon discovered that several phones purchased by Southerland were unaccounted for.
What's next:
This case is being investigated by the U.S. Capitol Police and the Federal Bureau of Investigation. It is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jake Green for the District of Columbia, with assistance from other federal prosecutors.
The Source: The information for this story was provided in a press release by the U.S. Department of Justice. This story was reported from Los Angeles. The Associated Press, FOX News contributed.