Former Southern Poverty Law Center Official Arrested for Alleged Financial Fraud

A former director at the Southern Poverty Law Center was arrested for allegedly overseeing secret payments to informants from white supremacist groups, federal authorities said Wednesday.

Heidi Beirich, who once tracked hate groups for the SPLC, was indicted in Alabama for her alleged role in the scheme and self-surrendered in California, according to a person familiar with the matter. The indictment said Beirich was in a romantic relationship with an informant who received $140,000 between 2015 and 2021 in joint accounts the two shared. Her indictment is part of a larger federal case involving the SPLC and its alleged financial crimes.