Sacramento DA is investigating allegations of fraud in NAACP COVID food program

The Sacramento County District Attorney is conducting a criminal investigation into a $2.75 million local NAACP COVID food program in which a county administrator who oversaw the project also profited from it.

The DA began interviewing people after an August Sacramento Bee investigation detailed how Stephanie Hopkins, a program planner with the county’s Department of Human Assistance, was paid by one of the leaders of the Dine-In 2 initiative while also approving the invoices for it. Hopkins also participated in an audit that concluded the program she oversaw improperly allocated federal funds and the county should demand they be refunded.

Following The Bee’s story, Hopkins has been on leave, according to a county spokeswoman Kim Nava.

Nava said the county had “supplied the District Attorney’s Office with the documents it provided to The Sacramento Bee.”

Nava added in an email: “Since all materials have been provided to the District Attorney for an independent investigation, we want to ensure it’s clear that the County is taking appropriate steps to address what occurred. We are awaiting the results of the District Attorney’s investigation and are cooperating fully, as we would in any situation where potential wrongdoing may have taken place.”

A Sacramento DA office spokeswoman said recently the “the matter is under review” with no further comment, and participants in the program, some who said it cheated them out of money, abused them and even resulted in forcing them to close their restaurants, have said they have been contacted by a criminal investigator.

“They spoke to me for around four hours,” said Ozzie Chavez, whose Orangevale restaurant Paisley Cafe closed following her experience with the Dine-in 2 program. “The district attorney asked me a lot about Stephanie Hopkins. I explained how she popped into Zoom calls and made bogus claims that the reason we weren’t being paid was because of a county audit. That audit turned out to be pure fiction.”

That referenced audit was not real. The Sacramento County Department of Finance did complete an audit in May after allegations of malfeasance in the program. That 34-page report recommended the county “take immediate and appropriate action” to reclaim the funds former leaders of the Greater Sacramento NAACP and those they contracted had gained through the program at the expense of the restaurant owners and those they served.

The DA also inquired, Chavez said, about Betty Williams, the former Sacramento NAACP president, and Salena Pryor, then-education chair of the local chapter, who, according to the county audit, profited from the COVID-era program which used federal funds to help restaurants provide food to needy individuals and families. She said the investigator also asked about Jackson Gourmet Foods.

Relatives of Pryor’s formed that company, which was created after the contract was signed. Its business license said it was an online pet treat company. The company was paid over $230,000.

Ongoing NAACP conflict

The NAACP suspended Williams and Pryor for “financial impropriety” in October 2024.

Williams and other former NAACP officials recently formed the nonprofit National African American Civil Rights Organization.

Williams is NAACRO’s CEO, and she and other members of the group were embroiled this fall in a failed effort to unseat Rick Callender, the NAACP Regional President for Hawaii and California.

On NAACRO’s website, Williams states that “I (along with many others), had my voice silenced when challenging what many may perceive as rigged elections (that frequently involve results without accurate counts and unverified winners). So many have filed harassment and retaliation complaints for years without response from the National Office, and to this day, we still only hear crickets in response.”

Callender ultimately prevailed in the NAACP election by a 5-1 margin.

The group’s activities led to a restraining order issued by a judge in San Jose. A member of NAACRO created a video claiming Callender, without evidence, is a serial sexual harasser.

The video was widely circulated and sent to voting NAACP members in the fall, resulting in the restraining order against Basil Kimbrew. Kimbrew was convicted in 2005 for misuse of public funds as a Compton School Board member, and has a history of involvement in campaign controversies in California, including allegations of election fraud.

Santa Clara Superior Court Judge Rebeca Esquivel-Pedroza signed a protective on Oct. 3 agreeing with a police report that “the restrained posted newsletters claiming the protected person is a sexual predator” and “posted the protected person’s cell phone number and address, inciting them to protest at his residence.”

A hearing is scheduled on whether to continue the restraining order Tuesday in San Jose.

This story was originally published December 8, 2025 at 10:00 AM.