Radio personality and onetime Cincinnati mayor candidate sentenced to 7 years in prison

A onetime candidate for U.S. Senate and Cincinnati mayor who also describes herself as a radio and television personality was sentenced Tuesday to seven years in prison for fraud related to COVID-19 relief.

Kelli Prather, 51, was found guilty last year of defrauding two federal programs intended to help small businesses during the early months of the pandemic.

U.S. District Judge Matthew McFarland imposed the sentence Tuesday in federal court in Cincinnati. Prosecutors had asked for a seven-year prison term.

Prosecutors say Prather, between June and November 2020, tried to qualify for federal loans for businesses that were not in operation. She submitted applications containing multiple false statements, seeking more than $1.2 million for six businesses.

She overinflated monthly payrolls and revenues and lied about the number of employees she had, according to testimony.

“The evidence presented at trial revealed that (the) figures were false, fabricated and a figment of her imagination,” prosecutors said in documents filed in advance of her sentencing.

Prather claimed in one application that in a seven-month span, she earned nearly $1 million from her business, Rich Glo Management. Around the same time, prosecutors said, she was receiving unemployment assistance from the state.

But she didn’t stop there, prosecutors said. She “duped” and took advantage of her disabled nephew, using his name and Social Security number in several of the fraudulent applications.

In court documents, prosecutors have also criticized Prather for what they called “antics” during and after last year’s trial.

They described how Prather had “stormed off the witness stand” and left the courtroom during the trial. She also posted photos with courthouse personnel on social media, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors noted that they are not seeking the maximum possible sentence and that some aspects of Prather’s history and background call for a lesser sentence.

Evidence of mental health struggles

There is evidence, they say, that Prather has struggled with her mental health. In fact, after being found guilty in July 2023, she was sent to a facility for a psychiatric and/or psychological examination, records show.

Since mid-January, she has been held at the Butler County Jail, awaiting sentencing.

Prather also has been a victim of domestic abuse, and in one incident was shot.

Despite her personal challenges, prosecutors said, she has played a prominent role in the community and been a significant source of support for other family members.

A native of Cincinnati, Prather has long been involved in city and state politics – part concerned citizen, part activist, part journalist and part candidate.

On X, previously known as Twitter, she describes herself as an “occupational therapist, author, radio and television personality.”

She studied occupational therapy at Cincinnati State and the University of Findlay, where she earned a master’s degree. And in interviews, she said she owned a home healthcare business.

Cincinnati City Hall fixture

For many years, she was a fixture in Cincinnati City Hall. She spoke at public comment, but she’d also claim to be a reporter and record meetings and do interviews, which she would share with her followers on social media.

When FC Cincinnati was building a stadium in the West End, she advocated against the idea as if she lived there, even though she didn’t.

Her first big foray in the political arena came in 2016, when she ran for U.S. Senate the same year then-Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld ran – both taking on former Ohio Governor Ted Strickland in the Democratic primary. It was Strickland who garnered the slot on the ballot.

But the fact that Prather made a dent in the race, despite running her campaign on a shoestring budget, shocked many. Strickland won 65% of the vote, Sittenfeld, 22%, and Prather, 13%. She received 145,000 votes.

Prather made three other attempts to win elected office – running for Cincinnati City Council in 2017, Hamilton County Commissioner in 2020 and mayor in 2021. She fell short of the signatures she needed to get on the mayoral ballot and lost the other races.

After the mayor’s race didn’t work out, she tried again to run for U.S. Senate.

That second senate race led to her indictment last year in state court on election fraud charges. She is accused of falsifying her petitions. The case is still pending.

This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Kelli Prather sentenced to 7 years for COVID-19-relief fraud