ASHEVILLE - A Marion woman was sentenced to three years in prison for defrauding the Federal Emergency Management Agency after Tropical Storm Helene decimated much of Western North Carolina.
Peggy Lee Cantrell, 41, was sentenced to three years in prison followed by four years of supervised release, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina. Cantrell was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $30,631.59 to FEMA.
According to court records, on or about Feb. 22, 2025, Cantrell, who was incarcerated in a state prison at the time, filed an application for disaster assistance with FEMA for a home she claimed was located at 193 Beaver Creek Road in Marion. She falsely claimed that she rented the home as her
primary residence and that the home was destroyed by Tropical Storm Helene in September 2024.
On Feb. 27, 2025, Cantrell falsely amended her FEMA application’s residential status from renter to owner of the damaged dwelling. Then, on Feb. 28, 2025, Cantrell falsely represented to a FEMA inspector that she owned the residential trailer that was destroyed, but not the land where the trailer was placed.
Contrary to her claims, Cantrell never lived at, rented, or owned a residence or structure at that location. In fact, no home existed at that location at the time the storm struck the area. In addition, when Tropical Storm Helene hit Western North Carolina, Cantrell was an inmate with the North Carolina Department of Adult Corrections and outside the effects of the storm.
Court records show that, in March 2025, Cantrell submitted a handwritten letter to FEMA attesting that the information she had provided was “true and correct,” falsely claiming that she had purchased the home for $8,500 and that she had lived there for 25 years. She also falsely attested that all of her important personal documents “got washed away by Hurricane Helene.”
The same month, FEMA paid Cantrell’s false claim and wired her $30,631.59 .
In October 2025, Cantrell pleaded guilty to fraud in connection with a major disaster or emergency benefits. She is currently in federal custody after her bond was revoked for drug use.
“In the wake of Hurricane Helene, disaster relief was essential for rebuilding our community. Every dollar of that money should have gone to those that needed it. Instead, Cantrell stole that taxpayer money —and committed her fraud while she was in jail,” Ferguson said.
“We will continue to root out fraud and prosecute those who exploit federal programs, because every dollar taken through fraud is a dollar that cannot help our communities recover.”
Kara Fohner is the Public Safety Reporter for the Asheville Citizen Times. Email her at kfohner@usatodayco.com or call her at 980-241-8671.
This article originally appeared on Asheville Citizen Times: Woman sentenced for stealing $30,000 in FEMA funds while in prison
