26 Black Lives Matter chapters file lawsuit against organization alleging top official took $10 million from groups, disguised payments as "consulting fees"

Leaders of the group Black Lives Matter have filed a lawsuit alleging that an executive stole millions of dollars in donations to the organization and used them as his "personal piggy bank."

A total of 26 Black Lives Matter chapters filled the lawsuit that claims Shalomyah Bowers, the head of the Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation (BLMGNF), a subsidiary of the BLM organization, used an estimated $10 million of charitable contributions for his personal use.

In court filings, the lawsuit alleges that Bowers defrauded local Black Lives Matter chapters by siphoning funds away from them and used the money to pay his own consulting business millions of dollars in fees. The chapters are now seeking damages + restitution.

In a press conference, Melina Abdullah said "Global Network Foundation has been taken away from the people who built it. It is now led by a highly paid consultant who paid himself upwards of $2 million in a single year."

BLM co-founder Patrisse Cullors initially hired Bowers in 2020.

In a statement following the press conference, the Black Lives Matter Board of Directors denied the allegations against Bowers and added they were “disappointed and dismayed at the false narrative."

An attorney representing Black Lives Matter and Shalomyah Bowers released the following statement "The allegation in the September 1, 2022 complaint filed by Melina Abdullah and BLM Grassroots that Shalomyah Bowers and Bowers’ consulting firm siphoned more than $10 million of donors’ money from Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation is completely false. Either Melina Abdullah and BLM Grassroots blatantly and intentionally lied with this allegation in order to garner salacious news headlines, or they simply failed to do their due diligence before making such a wild and unfounded accusation. Either is simply unacceptable.”

The lawsuit comes as Black Lives Matter finances have come under increased scrutiny. In 2020, ten BLM chapters  announced they were severing ties with the organization due to a lack of transparency and support.

BY: realnewsnobullshit