WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — On Wednesday, Derwin Montgomery appeared in a federal court and pleaded not guilty to 15 charges against him. Last week, a grand jury charged him with wire fraud, claiming he embezzled money from the Bethesda Center for the Homeless.
In the indictment filed on August 29, the FBI claimed Montgomery took upwards of $23,000 for personal use. They claimed he spent money on vacations, luxury hotels and even services at a gentlemen's club in Nevada.
Court documents showed Montgomery was officially arrested on Wednesday. Montgomery is not being held in custody. The government did not request detention and agreed to release conditions. The details of those release conditions were not published on the federal court docket.
Montgomery's attorneys provided a statement:
"The charges against Mr. Montgomery carry with them the presumption of innocence. We expect voluminous discovery and are working diligently to prepare his defense. We would like to thank the U.S. Attorney's office, the U.S. Marshals and U.S. Probation for making his release today an efficient process."
In the indictment, the FBI accused Montgomery of taking money for a personal use of a brand new SUV, funneling thousands of dollars to his media company and taking advantage of the homeless center's financial policies.
Bethesda Center for the Homeless has since said it would adjust its reimbursement policies.
Derwin Montgomery served as a Winston-Salem city councilmember from 2009 to 2018. He served as a North Carolina State House Representative for District 72, from 2018 to 2020. He ran for U.S. House in 2020 but lost in the democratic primary to Congresswoman Kathy Manning who went on to win the general election.
Montgomery is also listed as a pastor at First Calvary Baptist Church in Winston-Salem.
Neither the city of Winston-Salem nor First Calvary Baptist Church have responded to request for comment on the charges against Montgomery.