Overview
- The defendant, Christopher Southerland of Glen Burnie, Maryland, is accused of stealing roughly 240 House-owned cellphones while serving as a system administrator for the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.
- Court filings say he had the devices shipped to his home between January and May 2023 despite the committee employing about 80 staffers.
- Prosecutors allege he sold more than 200 phones to a nearby pawn shop and directed an employee to dismantle and sell them in parts to bypass House device-management controls.
- The alleged thefts came to light after an uninvolved eBay purchaser powered on one phone and reached the House Technology Service Desk.
- The phones are valued at about $150,000, and the FBI and U.S. Capitol Police are investigating with prosecution led in D.C. by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jake Green.