Cooper County R-IV School Board Vice-President Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud for Role in Misuse of School District Funds

KANSAS CITY, Mo. - A Cooper County R-IV School District board member pleaded guilty in federal court today for her role in a wire fraud scheme that defrauded the school district out of $385,000.

Ashley Benny, 41, of Bunceton, Mo., waived her right to a grand jury and pleaded guilty before U.S. Magistrate Judge Willie J. Epps to an information charging her with one count of wire fraud. This successful prosecution is one of many federal fraud cases pursued under the leadership of President Donald Trump and through the establishment of the Task Force to Eliminate Fraud.

Cooper County R-IV is a school district in Bunceton, Mo., with approximately 100 students. While serving as the school board treasurer in 2019, Benny was asked to research alternative investment options for the school district's unallocated savings. Benny learned through a friend of a supposedly lucrative overseas "standby letter of credit" investment that carried no risk of loss. The school district agreed to Benny's suggestion and voted to transfer $385,000 to a company called "AgFluent." Prior to the board vote, Benny failed to disclose that she opened and controlled the AgFluent bank account and hoped to personally profit from the investment.

The investment was a scam, and the school district was defrauded out of $233,000 wired overseas by AgFluent. Contrary to AgFluent's agreement with the school board, Benny then helped transfer the remaining school district investment funds to pay various other entities and expenses owed by a co-conspirator, including nearly $60,000 for the purchase of two semi-trucks and a $10,000 escrow payment on a failed land purchase deal. The school district never received any return on its $385,000 investment.

By pleading guilty today, Benny admitted that she is directly responsible for $146,518 in loss to Cooper County R-IV. Under the terms of the plea agreement, Benny must pay full restitution to the school district in this amount.

Under federal statute, Benny is subject to a sentence of up to 20 years in federal prison without parole. The maximum statutory sentence is prescribed by Congress and is provided here for informational purposes, as the sentencing of the defendant will be determined by the court based on the advisory sentencing guidelines and other statutory factors. A sentencing hearing has not yet been scheduled.

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John Constance and Lauren Kummerer. It was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Inspector General, Kansas City Field Office.

National Fraud Enforcement Division

On April 7, the Department of Justice announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division ("Fraud Division"). The Fraud Division is laser-focused on investigating and prosecuting those who commit fraud against the American people. The Department's work to combat fraud supports President Trump's Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, a whole-of-government effort chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance to eliminate fraud, waste, and abuse within Federal benefit programs.