The alleged spending included recreational travel to Jamaica and the Dominican Republic for Dickerson and her associates, as well as tens of thousands of dollars in retail purchases.
A federal grand jury indictment unsealed this week charged the leader of a Black Lives Matter chapter with allegedly siphoning millions of dollars in donations and bail-fund grants for personal use over five years.
US Attorney Robert J. Troester announced that Tashella Sheri Amore Dickerson, 52, of Oklahoma City, has been charged with wire fraud and money laundering in a 25-count federal indictment.
According to the indictment, Dickerson served as Executive Director of Black Lives Matter OKC (BLMOKC) beginning in at least 2016 and had access to the group’s financial accounts, including bank, PayPal, and Cash App accounts.
Federal prosecutors allege BLMOKC, while not registered as a tax-exempt nonprofit under Section 501(c)(3), accepted charitable donations through an affiliation with the Alliance for Global Justice (AFGJ), which served as BLMOKC’s fiscal sponsor. Under that arrangement, the indictment says, BLMOKC was required to use funds only for permitted tax-exempt purposes, keep records for how money was spent, and refrain from buying real estate without AFGJ’s consent.
Beginning in late spring 2020, during the nationwide protests following the death of George Floyd, BLMOKC raised money online and received grants from national bail funds intended to help post bail for individuals arrested in connection with racial justice protests, the indictment alleges. In total, BLMOKC raised more than $5.6 million, including grants from groups such as the Community Justice Exchange, Massachusetts Bail Fund, and Minnesota Freedom Fund, with much of the funding routed through AFGJ.
The indictment states that when bail checks were returned, some national bail funds sometimes allowed BLMOKC to keep all or part of the money to build a revolving bail fund or support BLMOKC’s broader social justice mission, so long as spending complied with 501(c)(3) limits. Despite those stated purposes and grant conditions, prosecutors allege that from June 2020 through at least October 2025, Dickerson embezzled funds from BLMOKC accounts for her personal benefit. The indictment claims she deposited at least $3.15 million in returned bail checks into personal accounts instead of BLMOKC accounts.
According to prosecutors, the alleged spending included recreational travel to Jamaica and the Dominican Republic for Dickerson and her associates, as well as tens of thousands of dollars in retail purchases. The indictment also alleges she spent at least $50,000 on food and grocery deliveries for herself and her children and purchased a personal vehicle registered in her name.
In addition, the indictment alleges Dickerson used the funds to buy six real properties in Oklahoma City. Prosecutors say the properties were deeded either in her own name or in the name of Equity International, LLC, an entity they allege she exclusively controlled.
The indictment further alleges Dickerson used interstate wire communications to submit two false annual reports to AFGJ on behalf of BLMOKC. Prosecutors say she reported that BLMOKC funds were used only for tax-exempt purposes and did not disclose that funds were allegedly used for her personal benefit.
A federal grand jury returned the indictment on Dec. 3, charging Dickerson with 20 counts of wire fraud and five counts of money laundering. If convicted, she faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 for each wire fraud count. For each money laundering count, she faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000 or twice the amount of criminally derived property involved in the transaction.
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