A prominent community and social justice activist, once honored as Bostonian of the Year, has managed to avoid incarceration in a federal fraud case, according to a statement from the Justice Department on Thursday.

Monica Cannon-Grant, aged 44, admitted guilt in September 2025 to 18 out of 27 charges, which included wire fraud, mail fraud, and neglecting to file tax returns. The charges stemmed from a scheme in which she and her late husband, Clark Grant, misappropriated thousands of dollars in donations meant for their Boston-based nonprofit.

On Thursday, she received a sentence of four years probation and was ordered to repay $106,003 in restitution. Federal prosecutors had initially suggested that U.S. District Court Judge Angel Kelley impose an 18-month prison sentence on Cannon-Grant.

Monica Cannon-Grant is seen addressing a crowd during a Black Lives Matter demonstration outside Boston Police Headquarters on September 22, 2020, in Boston. (Photo by Matt Stone/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald)

“Ms. Cannon-Grant’s actions were driven by greed and the exploitation of opportunities,” stated Nicolas Bucciarelli, the acting inspector in charge of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service’s Boston Division.

Cannon-Grant and her husband were accused of diverting COVID-relief and rental assistance funds from their Violence in Boston nonprofit for personal expenses and collecting about $100,000 in illegal unemployment benefits, among other charges.

Along with her late husband, the pair founded VIB, an anti-violence nonprofit dedicated to raising social awareness and aiding community causes in Boston, federal prosecutors said. 

The couple received nearly $54,000 in pandemic relief funds, authorities said. They also allegedly used some of the nonprofit’s funds to pay their auto loan and auto insurance bills.

Monica Cannon-Grant, center, speaks during a Juneteenth protest in Boston. Cannon-Grant was sentenced to probation in a federal fraud case, the Justice Department said Thursday.  (Joseph Prezioso/AFP via Getty Images)

They also conspired to defraud Boston’s Office of Housing Stability by misrepresenting their household income in an effort to obtain $12,600 in rental assistance and the Massachusetts Department of Unemployment Assistance by submitting forged employment documents so that another family member could receive nearly $44,000 in unemployment assistance.

Cannon-Grant also filed false tax returns for 2017 and 2018 and failed to file tax returns for 2019 and 2020, prosecutors said. 

Cannon-Grant was well-known in activist circles in Boston, earning numerous awards, including Boston Globe Magazine’s Bostonian of the Year award and a Boston Celtics Heroes Among Us award, both in 2020 amid nationwide protests following the killing of George Floyd. 

Monica Cannon-Grant leads marchers during a protest march in honor of Rayshard Brooks, sponsored by Black Lives Matter Boston and Violence in Boston Inc., June 22, 2020, in Boston. (Jim Davis/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

In 2022, after Cannon-Grant’s indictment, VIB said it had suspended all programs and was shutting down, but its Facebook page has been frequently active since.