Key Takeaways
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond charged nine people tied to OKCity Crisis Nursery, alleging the children's charity's founder embezzled more than $50,000 in donations.
Investigators say founder Jennifer Lynn Roberts moved over $200,000 to other defendants through Venmo and Cash App and spent donations on a car, salons, and vacations.
The nonprofit's federal tax-exempt status was revoked in 2024, yet prosecutors say it kept soliciting donations, which raises questions about how charity oversight catches fraud.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond's office charged nine people on July 28 in connection with alleged financial crimes at OKCity Crisis Nursery, a nonprofit that said it served children in crisis. Prosecutors allege the charity's founder and executive director, Jennifer Lynn Roberts, embezzled more than $50,000 in donations and moved more than $200,000 to other defendants through Venmo and Cash App.
Roberts founded the nonprofit in 2018 and was the sole authorized signer on its bank, PayPal, Venmo, and Cash App accounts, according to the attorney general's office. Investigators say donations meant for children went to personal costs, including about $13,500 on a car, $6,200 at nail salons, and $2,600 on tanning, along with cosmetic procedures, a gym membership, clothing, and vacations.
Roberts faces felony racketeering under Oklahoma's RICO Act, embezzlement, and charitable solicitation fraud, among other counts. The eight other defendants face charges ranging from embezzlement to receiving unlawful proceeds and accessory after the fact, and one is accused of creating a fake board of directors to help Roberts avoid prosecution. Eight of the nine are in custody, and all are presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The most notable part of this is the timing. Investigators say the nonprofit's federal tax-exempt status was revoked in 2024, and donations kept coming in after that.
The pattern here is hard to ignore. Money raised to feed and shelter children keeps becoming the target, the same thread that ran through Feeding Our Future's 70th fraud conviction and the GAO's finding of up to $521 billion in yearly federal fraud. Charitable trust is the asset being stolen, and it is the hardest one to put back.
People Also Ask
What is the OKCity Crisis Nursery case about?
Oklahoma prosecutors allege the children's charity's founder embezzled more than $50,000 in donations and moved over $200,000 to others through Venmo and Cash App. Nine people were charged on July 28, 2026.
Who is Jennifer Lynn Roberts?
She founded OKCity Crisis Nursery in 2018 and served as its executive director, and investigators say she was the sole authorized signer on the nonprofit's bank, PayPal, Venmo, and Cash App accounts.
What is the Oklahoma RICO Act?
The Oklahoma Racketeer-Influenced and Corrupt Organization Act lets prosecutors pursue patterns of criminal activity carried out through an organization, and Roberts faces a felony racketeering count under it.
How can donors check if a charity is legitimate?
Donors can confirm a group's IRS tax-exempt status through the IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search and review its filings before giving, since OKCity Crisis Nursery's exemption was revoked in 2024 while it kept soliciting.
Sources: News 9, FOX 25, Oklahoma Attorney General.