Antonio Brown, former Atlanta City Councilman, pleads guilty to fraud charge

Following years of denial of any wrongdoing on his part, former Atlanta City Councilman Antonio Brown entered a plea deal this week with federal authorities. The former lawmaker admitted to a single count of bank fraud following several charges filed against him in 2020. 

Brown’s charges included opening credit cards, taking out automobile loans, and spending thousands of dollars, which dates back as far as 2012. Brown then falsely claimed his identity was stolen. His plea deal came a week before Brown was scheduled to stand trial.

During his time on the City Council, Brown was one of the youngest and considered to be one of the most progressive members of that governing body. Denying all of the charges that were brought against him at the time, Brown went on to run an unsuccessful campaign for Atlanta mayor.

Court records reflect that Brown changed his plea during a Monday hearing. Brown went before U.S. District Court Judge Mark H. Cohen, where he pled guilty to one count which involved him lying about his income on a 2017 application for a $75,000 bank loan. Brown’s plea to this single count was in exchange for federal officials dropping six other charges originally filed against him.

As part of Brown’s plea deal, prosecutors agreed to recommend that he serve 18 months on probation, with the first eight on house arrest. The final say will be determined by Judge Cohen who will sentence Brown on April 13.