Ex-CDC supervisor pleads guilty to stealing over $190,000 in government funds

A former supervisor at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will resign from the Atlanta-based agency after she pleaded guilty to stealing government funds.

Authorities say 43-year-old Gwendolyn Brandon used dozens of fake invoices to steal over $190,000 from the federal government in less than two years.

According to prosecutors, Brandon created at least 46 fraudulent invoices in amounts between $2,230 to $9,970 from around August 2023 to February 2025. Using her position as supervisor, she got her employees to approve the invoices, which appeared to be from vendors, officials said.

Gwendolyn Brandon, a former supervisor at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has pleaded guilty to theft of government funds in connection with fake invoices she submitted to the CDC.

"This defendant embezzled taxpayer money and brazenly exploited her position of public trust by fabricating invoices," said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg. "When she is sentenced later this year, she will pay the price for her greed and deception."

On Thursday, Brandon pleaded guilty to theft of government funds. As part of her plea agreement, she agreed to resign from the CDC and never apply for a job with the federal government or work as a government contractor or vendor.

Brandon's sentencing hearing is scheduled for Sept. 3.