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Written by: A. Smith
Published December 8, 2025 @ 2:05 PM ET
FULTON COUNTY, Ga. – A Georgia state lawmaker was arrested Monday after a federal grand jury indicted her on charges alleging she fraudulently collected more than $17,000 in pandemic unemployment benefits.
State Rep. Sharon Henderson, a Democrat representing District 113, was charged with two counts of theft of government funds and 10 counts of making false statements, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia. She is expected to appear before U.S. Magistrate Judge Justin Anand on Monday, where she is anticipated to enter a not-guilty plea.
Prosecutors say Henderson applied for federal pandemic unemployment assistance in 2020 while she was a candidate for the state House. In her application, she claimed Henry County Schools was her employer and that she had worked for the district until March 2020, around the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.
But federal investigators say Henderson worked as a substitute teacher for only five days in 2018 and had not been employed by the school system since. According to the indictment, Henderson falsely stated she had pay stubs from 2019 as proof of employment and claimed the pandemic had shut down her workplace. She also allegedly filed weekly certifications asserting she was unable to report to work because she was under COVID-19 quarantine.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Henderson received roughly $17,000 in benefits she was not entitled to.
Prosecutors have not released additional details, and Henderson has not publicly commented on the charges.