St. Petersburg Mayor Ken Welch is dismissing rival attacks regarding his campaign’s embezzlement case as “political spin” after a former treasurer pled guilty to federal wire fraud.
Yolanda Brown, also known as Yolanda Rumph, admitted to stealing more than $1.4 million from approximately 20 clients nationwide. She now faces 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and full restitution after entering a guilty plea in federal court on Sept. 23.
Brown stole over $200,000 from Welch’s previous political committee, The Pelican, which was 73% of what it had raised throughout 2025. Welch was among the first candidates to bring her years-long scheme to light publicly in January – just as the 2026 mayoral race began in earnest.
Some opponents seized another opportunity to criticize the incumbent, an accountant by trade. In an interview following Brown’s plea, Welch addressed those who suggested the campaign lacked oversight or insinuated the theft was an inside job.
“It was political operatives, folks working for rival campaigns,” Welch said of the criticism. “So, I would just consider the source. Folks who know political PACs know that they’re independently run, and that’s the reason she was able to steal from so many clients. Elected officials are not actively doing the day-to-day monitoring.
“Folks know better than that – that’s just political spin.”
Welch emphasized that rather than suffering from lax management, his political committee was a catalyst that helped uncover Brown’s crimes. Financial reviews flagged campaign accounting discrepancies, which prompted a report to state and federal law enforcement agencies.
“We are the ones who noticed that it wasn’t reconciled,” Welch explained. “We were the ones who reported that and really started this investigation. We were doing our diligence … Clearly, there’s no gray area here. You had a treasurer that stole money. That happens with Little League football, schools, churches – and this person did the same thing.”
According to documents filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, Brown provided accounting, consulting, and compliance services to political campaigns and businesses nationwide. Between January 2022 and June 2026, she systematically exploited access to client bank accounts, siphoning funds to cover personal expenses and paying off previous victims in a pyramid-style juggling act.
A congressional campaign for the U.S. House of Representatives candidate in Pennsylvania, where Brown served as treasurer from August 2025 until February 2026, was among her victims. While she repaid about $400,000 over the course of her scheme, federal authorities reported that client losses still exceed $1 million.
Brown was charged in August. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert J. Livermore led the prosecution following an extensive joint investigation by FBI Philadelphia with assistance from FBI Tampa.
Welch praised federal law enforcement for their persistence in tracking down Brown, who used aliases and operated across multiple jurisdictions to evade detection. “The FBI has been great all the way,” he said.
“She obviously was guilty – there’s no question about that,” Welch added. “We moved forward despite the circumstances, but that was a significant amount of money. She needs to pay a consequence for that behavior.”
The fallout from the theft has played out amid an intense local election season. In a statement, Pelican PAC Chairperson Adrienne Bogen commended Welch’s decision to prioritize transparency over campaign optics, “because he knew it was the right thing to do.”
“Speaking out required courage, particularly during a competitive election year when he knew the disclosure could be used against him politically,” Bogen said. “Ken (Welch) chose transparency over political convenience and accountability over silence.”
Bogen believes that Welch helped “expose a much broader scheme, protect others from further harm and ensure that the victims’ voices were heard.” The mayor expressed frustration over the significant loss of donor dollars and relief that the legal system is delivering justice.
“We’ll see what the plea deal brings, but we want those dollars back that folks contributed to support our message and our vision,” Welch said. “We would love to have never lost the money, but the truth wins out. We knew we were on the side of the truth.”
Welch launched a new political committee, St. Petersburg Progress, on Jan. 30. In August, he finished second (21%) to former Gov. Charlie Crist (35%) in a six-way mayoral primary.
Crist’s political committee, St. Pete Shines, has raised about 15 times as much money as its counterpart since the primary. The general election is Nov. 3.
