A lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in D.C. on Monday by federal prosecutors accuses the gay former mayor of Hyattsville, Md., who took his own life in January, of embezzling $2.2 million from a D.C. charter school network he worked for from 2017 to July 2021.

A 24-page complaint in support of the lawsuit filed by prosecutors with the U.S. Department of Justice charges Kevin Ward, who served as Senior Director of Technology for KIPP DC, one of the city’s largest charter school networks, with using the embezzled funds to purchase property in West Virginia, at least 10 cars, and art and sports memorabilia.

“The Defendant Vehicles and Assorted Art and Sports Memorabilia were seized in Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia, and are currently in the custody of the U.S. Marshall Service,” the lawsuit complaint states.

It says federal authorities do not seek authority at this time to seize two houses on large tracts of land in Augusta, W.Va., which it says Ward allegedly purchased using embezzled funds from KIPP DC.

The lawsuit, which identifies itself as a civil forfeiture proceeding, doesn’t say whether the land and houses, 10 expensive vehicles, and the art and sports memorabilia are currently owned by Ward’s estate and his heirs, including his surviving husband, or whether some of the items had been sold before or after Ward’s death and the start of an investigation into the alleged embezzlement that began shortly before Ward took his own life.

Justice Department spokesperson Joshua Stueve told the Washington Blade the department would have no further comment on the lawsuit at this time.

The lawsuit says that among the 10 vehicles Ward allegedly purchased using embezzled funds were a 2021 Tesla Model S Plaid at a cost of $137,290 and a 2020 Tesla Model Y for $73,746.95.

Ward, 44, became acting mayor of Hyattsville on Jan. 1, 2021, following the resignation of former Mayor Candice Hollingsworth. He was next in line to become mayor in his role at the time as president of the Hyattsville City Council. Ward won election to complete the remainder of Hollingsworth’s term through 2023 in a special election, receiving 57.8 percent of the vote in a three-candidate race.

LGBTQ activists said they considered Ward as highly qualified to serve as Hyattsville’s first openly gay mayor. Ward posted on his campaign website during the election that he and his family made Hyattsville their home in 2014 after he and his husband adopted their two sons.
 Those who knew him, including many in the LGBTQ community, expressed shock and sorrow when the city of Hyattsville released a statement on Jan. 26 announcing Ward had died one day earlier from an apparent suicide.

“Mayor Ward was a valued and trusted leader and a fierce advocate for all the people of Hyattsville,” the statement said. “We are heartbroken at this loss and extend our deepest sympathy to the mayor’s family.”

U.S. Park Police disclosed at the time that Ward was found deceased with a “self-inflected gunshot wound” at Fort Marcy Park in McLean, Va.  

The federal lawsuit says that in his role as Senior Director of Technology for KIPP DC, Ward, among other things, was responsible for purchasing information technology products and services, including computers, tablets, software, and network services.

It says that shortly after the start of the COVID pandemic, when the closing of all schools for in-person attendance required the purchase of additional high-tech equipment to assist in remote learning, Ward reportedly created a company called Tenret Tech that purported to sell computer related equipment. The lawsuit complaint says the company’s address was listed as Ward’s home address.

It says a short time later, another company affiliated with Tenret Tech, Vast Systems, appeared on the scene that was controlled by Ward.

“Between April 2020 and October 2021, KIPP DC paid Tenret Tech and Vast Systems…approximately $2.2 million for laptops, tablets, and related services, all of which were arranged for and approved by Ward,” the complaint says. “None of the products or services which KIPP DC paid Tenret Tech were provided or delivered to KIPP DC,” the lawsuit states.

According to the lawsuit complaint, KIPP DC officials discovered last November or December after conducting an internal review that Tenret Tech had not provided any of the products and services purchased by KIPP DC and immediately suspected they had become the victim of fraud.

KIPP DC has said it informed the U.S. Attorney’s Office in D.C. of its finding, which prompted prosecutors with the U.S. Attorney’s office to open an investigation into the matter.
KIPP DC told the Washington Post the charter school network has recovered $1 million from its insurance provider and it was optimistic that the Justice Department’s recovery process through the lawsuit would recover more than $800,000 of the stolen funds.

“Sometime in July 2021, Ward took a leave of absence from KIPP DC and ultimately left its employment,” the complaint says.

Nearby gay mayors – Patrick Wojahn of College Park and Jeffrey Slavin of Sommerset, Md., said they got to know Ward through Maryland political circles and thought very highly of him. Both said they were deeply saddened by his suicide.

“There was nothing in his public life that would have predicted this,” Slavin said at the time of Ward’s death.

News of the allegations raised in the federal lawsuit now raise the question of whether Ward may have taken his own life after learning of the investigation into his alleged embezzlement.

“Like everyone else, I was shocked to learn of these charges, but I will continue to keep my focus on the positive aspects of Mayor Ward’s legacy,” Slavin told the Blade.