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A federal grand jury in Asheville returned a criminal indictment charging Peggy Lee Cantrell, 40, of Marion, with fraud in connection with a major disaster or emergency benefits and aggravated identity theft.

Cantrell appeared in federal court Friday morning. If convicted, she faces up to 30 years in prison for the fraud charge and two years in prison for the identity theft charge, according to a news release from Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.

“Disaster relief resources were intended to help western North Carolina get back on its feet after the devastation left by Helene,” Ferguson said. “Knowing that federal funding is often followed by federal fraud, my office is committed to ferreting out such fraud and our work is far from over. We will continue to bring to justice those who fraudulently used taxpayer money for personal gain because full recovery from Helene is going to take every available dollar.”

What do charges stem from?

On Sept. 27, 2024, Hurricane Helene, then a tropical storm, hit western North Carolina, causing massive devastation, including property damage and loss of life.

The storm was declared a major disaster, and FEMA made financial assistance and benefits available to people affected by the storm, the release said.

Victims could seek relief for home repair, personal property damage, transportation, medical expenses and housing assistance.

According to allegations in the indictment, on or about Feb. 22, 2025, Cantrell filed an application for disaster assistance with FEMA for a home she said was located at 193 Beaver Creek Road, in Marion. She said it was damaged by Helene. The indictment alleges that, in the application, Cantrell said she rented the property and that the damaged home was her primary residence. On or about Feb. 27, 2025, Cantrell allegedly amended her FEMA application’s residential status from renter to owner of the property, the release said.

The indictment alleges that Cantrell never lived at, rented or owned a residence or building at that location. No building existed at that location at the time the storm struck the area, the release said. Cantrell was living in Wake County.

On Feb. 28, 2025, Cantrell told a FEMA inspector that she owned the residential trailer that was destroyed, but not the land where the trailer was placed.

According to allegations in the indictment, in March, Cantrell submitted a letter to FEMA attesting that the information she provided was true and correct, the release said. She allegedly wrote that she bought the home from J.W. of South Carolina for $8,500 and that she had lived at 193 Beaver Creek Road for 25 years. She also attested that all of her important personal documents “got washed away by Hurricane Helene,” the release said. Cantrell also allegedly filed a false “Residential Property And Owner’s Association Disclosure Statement,” to support her claim that she had bought 193 Beaver Creek Road in 2005, from an individual identified as R.E. The indictment alleges that, in the Disclosure Statement, Cantrell used the name and signature of R.E., without R.E.’s consent or knowledge, according to the news release.

On March 12, FEMA paid Cantrell’s claim and wired $30,631.59 to Green Dot Bank in Pasadena, Calif. It is alleged that Cantrell withdrew funds from a credit union in Marion.

Cantrell is innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Asheville is prosecuting the case.