BATON ROUGE - The former head of Impact Charter School pleaded not guilty to theft and embezzlement charges in federal court Tuesday.

Chakesha Scott was indicted in July after allegedly diverting more than $2 million to a bank account for a separate organization called Friends of Impact Charter School, where she also served as CEO. Officials allege she used school funds for personal use and creating false documents to make the payments appear as business expenses, a scheme that allegedly spanned from 2018 to 2024. 

Her husband Eric Scott, their daughter Courtney Scott and contractor Sam Green were also named in a criminal indictment filed in the Middle District of Louisiana.

Officials say Chakesha Scott intentionally overpaid Green, who worked for Sam Green and Sons, and instructed him to send the extra money to her personal account. Green allegedly did work on the Scott family property, which was paid for by funds from the school. 

Chakesha Scott paid $166,520 from a school account for a 2021 Land Rover and a 2017 Acura MDX for her and her daughter to use, the document says, and the expenses were not authorized. Chakesha Scott also allegedly paid $42,371 to buy a 2018 Tesla from a dealership in Metairie. 

Chakesha and Eric Scott, over the course of four years, also intentionally misapplied $292,993 collected from families for school uniforms and activities, officials said.

In 2022, Chakesha Scott allegedly used $171,659 in Impact Charter funds to pay closing costs on a property that the school system did not own. During the same year, Chakesha and Eric Scott allegedly paid $114,094 for personal travel expenses on credit cards connected to Impact Charter.