CHARLOTTE — The new chairman of the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Board of Education pleaded guilty to one count, which was count 39, for conspiracy to commit mail, bank, and wire fraud in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme, a Channel 9 investigation found.
The discovery comes as the school board faces scrutiny over district contracts and prepares to launch its search for a replacement for former Superintendent Dr. Crystal Hill.
The CMS School Board is currently under investigation for its financial contracts.
On Monday, Channel 9 started getting tips that the new chairman, Dee Rankin, was investigated for financial crimes in the past.
As a realtor, Rankin and others bribed small businesses to help with fake mortgage applications and funneled kickback money to the home builder.
Rankin was sentenced to probation, including at least one year of home confinement.
Rankin admitted that he initially refused to cooperate with investigators during the mortgage fraud inquiry. “Now I know when those things happen, you should say something. Am I proud of it? No, but I’ve learned from everything that I’ve been through in my life,” Rankin said.
Addressing the renewed attention to his past, Rankin maintained that his legal history is not new information to the community or his colleagues on the board.
“I’m gonna continue to do the work; I’m gonna focus on the work. Like I said before, this is something that is not new information, and since I’ve been on the board, this has been out there,” Rankin said. He added, “I made a mistake 20-plus years ago, and now I am not ashamed of that; I’ve been doing the work for the last 20 years.”
Channel 9’s Jonathon Lowe asked Rankin on Tuesday how families and taxpayers can trust him to lead the board amid investigations by the state auditor and the SBI.
“This is something that occurred before I was on the board, before I served on the equity committee, before I served on the education committee, before I was elected,” Rankin said. “This happened almost two decades ago, and I want to make sure that the families and parents know that my work has spoken for itself, and I’ve been the same man of integrity, the same man of faith, and the same servant leader for the last few years. And I think that you can believe that everything that I do is rooted in integrity, so I’ve learned from past mistakes just like everyone else.”
Rankin stated he has no plans to resign from his post as board chair. He said he believes he retains the support of fellow board members to lead the search for a new superintendent, adding that board members can decide in December whether to re-elect him as chairman.
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The state auditor is looking into “financial irregularities” within CMS.
The district attorney asked the SBI to open a formal investigation.
Before Hill was fired, she alleged extortion and misspending related to contracts with community activist and former executive-in-residence Raki McGregor.
The district also confirmed on Tuesday afternoon that Hill’s chief of staff is retiring. Her last day is Nov. 6.
*A previous version of this story said Rankin pleaded guilty to 39 counts tied to a $20 million federal mortgage fraud scheme. He pleaded guilty to one count, count 39, for conspiracy to commit mail, bank, and wire fraud in a $20 million mortgage fraud scheme.
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