Former HISD employee who plead guilty to conspiracy a ‘flight risk,’ feds say

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) — A U.S. Attorney is concerned that a former school board president who pleaded guilty to conspiracy charges two years ago will leave the country as she awaits sentencing.

The FBI raided the Houston Independent School District’s headquarters in 2020. The following year, former HISD board president, Rhonda Skillern-Jones, entered a plea agreement on a conspiracy charge.

Officials said she accepted a $12,000 bribe in exchange for giving a taxpayer-funded contract to a local business owner.

Over the last two years, as she awaited sentencing, court documents show Skillern-Jones traveled to London, France, Hong Kong, and Bangkok.

“The extensive nature of (Skillern-Jones’) recently proposed travel – and the fact that it is not for a serious business purpose or family emergency – raises the question whether (she) has now become a flight risk,” a U.S. Attorney wrote in a court filing on Thursday. “It also presents the possibility that (Skillern-Jones) will not be able to pay restitution because of the cost of the travel. The Government therefore opposes return of the passport and requests that the Court determine whether (she) can show by clear and convincing evidence that she is not a risk of flight. If she cannot make this showing, then she should be taken into custody.”

13 Investigates reached out to Skillern-Jones’ attorney but did not receive a callback.

She was one of five people who pleaded guilty for their roles in the alleged kickback scheme.

She faces five years in prison. The charge also carries a $250,000 maximum possible fine.

At the tim the news broke, Skillern-Jones was serving on the Houston Community College Board and worked for Precinct 1 County Commissioner Rodney Ellis. Both said they were surprised by the news. She resigned from the board and was terminated by the county.

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