False Embezzlement Claim Rocks Local School Board Race

A local activist named Dewan Bellamy posted a video on Facebook accusing school board member Debra Freeman of stealing money from a homeless shelter. The claim spread fast. Freeman leads the Boys and Girls Club now. She used to run the Waynesboro Area Refuge Ministry. Bellamy said she took funds meant for homeless people. He demanded she quit the race. The video got deleted later. But copies exist.

Bellamy now says the whole thing was made up. He admits he was pushed to share the lie. He points to two people. One is Kelvin Washington. He is a pastor running against Freeman. The other is Chanda McGuffin-Tucker. She runs a nonprofit called RISE. She backed Washington publicly. Freeman pulled out of a RISE forum because of that support. McGuffin-Tucker and Freeman argued online. Things got nasty.

Bellamy shared screenshots of private messages with McGuffin-Tucker. He says those chats prove she urged him to attack Freeman. Washington put out a statement. He says he never told anyone to go negative. But he owns his supporters' actions. He wants them to respect Freeman. He says he will focus on students. Freeman has stayed quiet. She did not answer requests for comment.

This started with a debate snub. It turned into a smear campaign. Digital receipts show coordination. A nonprofit leader got personal in an election. An activist became a tool. The truth came out because Bellamy flipped. Now voters have to sort through the mess. Trust is broken. The race is ugly.