Local activist Sir Maejor Page, also known as Tyree Conyers-Page, has been sentenced to prison after he was found guilty of creating a fraudulent non-profit organization linked to the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. Page used this fake organization to deceive donors and supporters, ultimately using the funds for personal shopping sprees.
Page received a prison sentence of 42 months for his crimes after he was found guilty in April. WTOL reported that he was charged with one count of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering.
In 2020, the FBI’s National Threat Operations Center received a complaint stating that Page had been accessing and misusing funds that were meant for the BLM movement.
The complaint alleged that he had been posing as a leader of the movement. After conducting an investigation, it was discovered that he had created a social media page called Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta (BLMGA).
According to a press release by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Ohio, BLMGA was falsely presented as a non-profit organization on various social media platforms, including Facebook and GoFundMe.
The organization amassed a significant following and received donations from approximately 18,000 individuals through its Facebook account.
According to a news release from the FBI, Page created a bank account called “Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta, Inc.” He was the only person authorized to sign on the account.
From April 2018 to May 2020, the account had minimal activity, with only small transactions made. The balance of the account never surpassed $5,000.
In the following months, the account experienced a surge in donations, with BLMGA’s social media platform receiving $36,493.80 in June, $370,933.69 in July, and $59,914.69 in August.
In private messages to his profiles, Page reassured users that the funds were not used for personal items, emphasizing that all the funds were solely used for movement-related purposes.
Page repeatedly used a debit card connected to BLMGA’s bank account for personal expenses. These expenses included purchases for food, dining, entertainment, clothing, furniture, a home security system, tailored suits, and accessories.
Page transferred money from the BLMGA account to his personal account to purchase a pistol and two rifles. In addition, he also acquired a property worth $112,000, which consisted of a house and an adjacent vacant lot.
Page’s personal expenses, totaling over $200,000, were paid for using donation funds. As a result, he was arrested in September 2020.