BALTIMORE, MD—A former legislative aide in the Maryland State Senate pleaded guilty to felony theft scheme on Wednesday for stealing legislative scholarship funds, according to Maryland State Prosecutor Charlton T. Howard III.
Esther Dikongue used her position to allocate scholarship funds to herself without authorization from the Senator she worked for. The funds are intended to support Maryland students attending college within the state or pursuing programs unavailable in Maryland. Dikongue continued to access the Senator’s email after leaving their office to ensure she received the scholarship funds.
“It is unacceptable to misappropriate funds that are reserved to help Maryland students attend universities,” said Howard. “Our Office will continue to work to ensure Maryland tax-payer dollars are being used as intended.”
The Honorable Stacy W. McCormack accepted the guilty plea on Wednesday. Sentencing is scheduled for July 16, 2025.
This article was written with the assistance of AI and reviewed by a human editor.
Photo by Sora Shimazaki from Pexels
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