Black Lives Matter Founder in Jail: Page, Cullors, and BLM Probes

No founder of the Black Lives Matter movement is in jail. The confusion behind the search usually traces to one of two prosecutions of people who ran local BLM-affiliated groups: Tashella Sheri Amore Dickerson, executive director of Black Lives Matter Oklahoma City, who was federally indicted in December 2025 on 25 counts of wire fraud and money laundering, and Sir Maejor Page, who ran a Facebook page called “Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta” and was sentenced in October 2024 to 42 months in federal prison. Neither is a co-founder of the national movement. The movement’s co-founder most often named in financial controversies, Patrisse Cullors, has not been criminally charged in any jurisdiction.¹

The BLM Oklahoma City Indictment

A federal grand jury in the Western District of Oklahoma returned a 25-count indictment against Dickerson on December 3, 2025, and it was unsealed on December 11, 2025.² Twenty counts charge wire fraud and five charge money laundering. Prosecutors allege that between June 2020 and at least October 2025, Dickerson deposited at least $3.15 million in returned bail checks into her own bank accounts and into accounts belonging to Equity International, LLC, an entity she exclusively controlled.³

The money originated as bail funds. BLM OKC raised more than $5.6 million beginning in late spring 2020, with grants flowing in from national bail funds including the Community Justice Exchange, the Massachusetts Bail Fund, and the Minnesota Freedom Fund. When protest cases were resolved and bail was returned, some funders allowed BLM OKC to keep the money to operate a revolving bail fund or support its mission.² Prosecutors say Dickerson instead spent the returned funds on six Oklahoma City properties (deeded to her or to Equity International), recreational trips to Jamaica and the Dominican Republic, tens of thousands of dollars in retail shopping, at least $50,000 in food and grocery deliveries, and a personal vehicle. One of the properties, purchased in 2021, had been publicly described by Dickerson as a future BLM OKC community center but was placed in her own name.³

BLM OKC was not itself a registered 501(c)(3). It relied on the Arizona-based Alliance for Global Justice to collect tax-deductible donations on its behalf in exchange for an 8 percent administrative fee.⁴ Prosecutors allege Dickerson submitted two false annual reports to the Alliance, certifying that funds had been used for tax-exempt purposes and failing to disclose her personal spending.³

Each wire fraud count carries up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine. Each money laundering count carries up to 10 years and a $250,000 fine. The case, United States v. Dickerson (5:25-cr-00499), remains active with all 25 counts pending; the most recent docket entry available is dated June 18, 2026.⁵ Public records do not confirm whether Dickerson has been arrested or entered a plea. In a Facebook live video on the day the indictment was unsealed, she told followers she was “alright.”⁶ She is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Sir Maejor Page: The One BLM-Affiliated Figure Actually in Prison

Sir Maejor Page, who ran the “Black Lives Matter of Greater Atlanta” Facebook page, is the only BLM-affiliated leader the file identifies as having been sentenced to federal prison. A jury convicted him in April 2024 of one count of wire fraud and three counts of money laundering after he defrauded roughly 18,000 donors of more than $450,000. He had solicited donations claiming the money would support the racial justice movement, then spent it on personal items, travel, entertainment, firearms, and a home in Toledo, Ohio, purchased under the name “Hi Frequency Ohio.” Page continued fundraising even after his organization’s tax-exempt status was revoked for failing to file IRS Form 990 for three consecutive years.⁷ In October 2024, a federal judge sentenced him to 42 months.⁸

Page was not a co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement and had no formal affiliation with the national foundation. His organization was a separately branded operation he ran himself.

The Federal Investigation Into the National BLM Foundation

The Black Lives Matter Global Network Foundation, the national organization, is under federal investigation but has not been charged. The Associated Press reported in October 2025 that the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Central District of California is examining whether leaders of the foundation defrauded donors who gave during the 2020 protests. The probe has involved subpoenas and at least one search warrant.⁹ It reportedly began under the Biden administration and continued under the Trump administration.¹⁰

The foundation, which reported collecting more than $90 million in donations after Floyd’s death, denies being a target. In an October 30, 2025 statement, it said it “is not a target of any federal criminal investigation” and reaffirmed a commitment to “full transparency, accountability, and the responsible stewardship of resources.”⁹ No criminal charges against the foundation or its co-founders have been filed.

The scrutiny built on earlier controversies, most prominently the foundation’s 2020 purchase of a roughly $6 million home in the Studio City area of Los Angeles using donor funds. The foundation described it as a “Creator’s House” for fellowship recipients. Reporting later revealed the property was monitored by co-founder Patrisse Cullors’ brother, who was paid with BLM funds, and that Cullors used the property to film personal content, including for her YouTube channel.¹¹¹²¹³ Cullors was listed as the sole board member for that fiscal year.

Where Patrisse Cullors Stands

Patrisse Cullors co-founded the Black Lives Matter movement in 2013 and served as executive director of the Global Network Foundation until stepping down in May 2021, amid months of criticism over financial oversight and reporting about her personal real estate.¹⁴ She has denied all allegations of wrongdoing, stating on Instagram: “I have never misappropriated funds.”¹¹ She has not been criminally charged, arrested, or jailed.¹

So the short answer to the question people are actually typing: a founder is not in jail. A local BLM chapter director in Oklahoma City is facing federal fraud charges, a separately branded BLM activist in Atlanta is serving a federal sentence, and the national foundation is under investigation but has not been charged.

1
New York Post. DOJ Investigating Possible Fraud Within Black Lives Matter Movement
2
U.S. Department of Justice. Executive Director of Black Lives Matter OKC Charged With Wire Fraud and Money Laundering
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KOCO. Black Lives Matter OKC Executive Director Charged With Wire Fraud, Money Laundering
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The Frontier. How Millions Raised for Black Lives Matter OKC Ended Up in One Woman’s Bank Account
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CourtListener. United States v. Dickerson – Parties
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Oklahoma Voice. Oklahoma City Black Lives Matter Leader Indicted on Embezzlement, Money Laundering Charges
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U.S. Department of Justice. BLM Activist Sentenced to Prison for Wire Fraud and Money Laundering
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13abc. Sir Maejor Page Sentenced to Prison for Wire Fraud, Money Laundering
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PBS NewsHour. Justice Department Investigating Fraud Allegations Against Black Lives Matter Leaders
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CBS News. Justice Department Investigating Black Lives Matter Foundation Donations
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NPR. BLM Leaders Face Questions After Allegedly Buying a Mansion With Donation Money
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Business Insider. Black Lives Matter Tax Filing Shows Cofounder Paid Brother for Security
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KATV. Tax Docs Show BLM Foundation Directed Millions to People With Close Ties to Its Leadership
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Capital B News. Black Lives Matter DOJ Investigation