The recent Mississippi welfare-fraud scandal involving former NFL quarterback Brett Favre is beginning to garner more national news attention.
On Wednesday night, the scandal was highlighted with a primetime segment on NBC Nightly News.
On Tuesday, an investigative report by Mississippi Today revealed that former Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant helped Favre obtain welfare funds in order to help build a new volleyball center at the University of Southern Mississippi.
The news outlet exposed text messages between Bryant and Favre in 2017 and 2019. These texts were filed in the state of Mississippi’s civil lawsuit over misspent welfare funds on Monday.
In the texts, Bryant and Favre discussed how to divert at least $5 million in welfare funds to help build the Southern Miss volleyball facility. Favre’s daughter was a member of the Golden Eagles’ volleyball team when these texts were sent.
Favre’s legal team says the NFL Hall of Famer had no knowledge he was receiving misplaced welfare funds.
Favre and Bryant have not been criminally charged.