LANSING, Mich. (WZMQ) – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel announced 16 felony charges against Farmington Hills businesswoman Fay Beydoun on Wednesday. Nessel is alleging Beydoun misused a $20 million state grant intended to launch an international business accelerator and instead used the funds for personal expenses while submitting false reports to state officials.
Prosecutors say Beydoun is charged with running a criminal enterprise, forgery, uttering and publishing, and multiple counts of larceny by conversion. In plain terms, they allege she used a state-funded nonprofit, Global Link International, to obtain taxpayer dollars, submitted false paperwork to keep the money coming, and then spent portions of it in ways not allowed under the grant agreement.
At a press conference in Lansing, Nessel said Beydoun allegedly operated a criminal enterprise to use state funds for personal expenses and her own enrichment, and repeatedly misrepresented how the money was being spent.
Investigators say the alleged scheme continued even after concerns were raised internally and by a whistleblower in 2024, but the grant was not terminated until March 2025.
“A former Global Link employee turned whistleblower alerted Michigan Economic Development Corporation (MEDC) CEO Quentin Messer in July 2024 that Beydoun had been operating the organization without a functioning board of directors and with minimal oversight of spending,” Nessel said.
Despite those warnings, she said, payments continued for months, including a reported $550,000 annual salary, while investigators say false progress reports were used to maintain access to funds and avoid enforcement action.
The grant, administered by the MEDC, was designed to attract international companies to Michigan. But investigators say they have not found evidence that any businesses were actually brought to the state through the program.
Nessel said financial records reviewed so far show about $1.36 million in spending, with less than $20,000 tied to the grant’s stated purpose. She also said roughly $6.3 million in funds has been frozen and could be subject to forfeiture if there is a conviction.
Court filings allege spending that prosecutors say was unrelated to the program, including personal legal bills, travel, home furnishings, rugs billed as investor event costs, and dinners later described as official program activity.
Investigators also say Beydoun created Global Link International shortly after the grant was approved and listed her home as the organization’s business address, with limited oversight or governance in place.
Nessel said the case also raises broader questions about how “enhancement grants” are structured, describing them as legislative funding written in such specific terms that they effectively point to a single intended recipient. She suggested that while the practice itself is not illegal, it can raise concerns about conflicts of interest and whether stronger safeguards are needed to ensure proper oversight.
She also emphasized there is no evidence at this point that lawmakers or state officials knowingly participated in any fraud, noting it is one thing to be involved in shaping or directing a grant, and another to know the money would later be misused.
“Candidly speaking, a lot of these grants go to people who are politically well-connected, but that alone does not establish criminal liability.” She said.
Beydoun has not entered a plea and does not currently have an attorney listed in court records. The investigation remains ongoing, and prosecutors say additional charges or defendants are still possible.
