JUST IN: ‘Squad’ Democrat’s Husband Indicted On Shocking Charges

An indictment against the husband of former “Squad” Democratic Congresswoman Cori Bush (D-MO) was unsealed on Friday, offering a glimpse into the yearslong investigation the U.S. Justice Department has conducted against one of her top aides who fell under heavy scrutiny after being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars with little to show for it.

Cortney Merritts, who married Bush in February 2023, earned over $150,000 while serving as her security guard during her four years in office. However, the payments became the center of controversy after it was revealed that Merrits had no qualifications or specific training to serve in a protective capacity.

The indictment overlooks Merritts’s hiring and instead charges him with submitting a false application to receive federal COVID-19 benefits during the pandemic. The government alleges that the U.S. Army veteran falsified details about his business to obtain $20,000 in loans between 2020 and 2021 under the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan Program.

“Merritts fraudulently claimed in this application that he had created this business in 2020 and that it had generated $128,000 in gross income that year. Based on Merritts’ representations about his gross income, Merritts received a $20,832 PPP loan. Merritts used the proceeds for his personal benefit and enjoyment,” the DOJ said in a release announcing his arrest.

The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Rothstein who was in the DOJ during the Biden-Harris administration.

Bush, an outspoken member of the far-left “Squad” group of minority lawmakers, lost her 2024 Democratic primary to a centrist challenger who pledged to put constituent services and governing over grandstanding. She has floated the possibility of another run for office.

“Running for office again is not off the table at all. I did not expect to only be in Congress for four years, and so I do believe at some point I will run again, whether it’s for Congress or something else, I don’t know,” she told Politico in December.

The 48-year-old shot from community activist to congresswoman overnight, defeating incumbent Democrat Lacy Clay (D-MO) during her second attempt in 2020 to represent parts of Saint Louis, Missouri. She drew headlines for all the wrong reasons: video surfaced of Merritts making virulently antisemitic statements, and Bush raised eyebrows when she said she’d been “radicalized” following her election loss and promised to unleash “the other Cori.”

Even after the Washington Free Beacon reported that Bush’s husband was the target of a DOJ investigation, she continued to pay him a $5,000-a-month salary for “security services.” During her time in office, she spent approximately $815,000 on related expenses.

Nathaniel Davis III, another individual Bush hired for protection, has previously said he possesses supernatural abilities, allowing him to control the weather and conjure tornadoes.