Wyclef Jean's charity under fire again for alleged misuse of funds

Wyclef Jean’s charity that helped the disaster relief in Haiti after their devastating earthquake is coming under fire for questionable use of the $16 million raised.

Records indicate that less than one third of that amount of money went to emergency efforts and $1 million was dished out to a firm in Florida which doesn’t seem to exist.

The New York Post reports that the charity is no stranger to controversy, as in 2008 Jean and his co-founder, cousin Jerry Duplessis, never filed the required tax form detailing its spending with the IRS.

One year later, Yele Haiti was under fire again when Jean and Duplessis were accused of using the funds for their personal use.

In January 2010, Jean appeared at a press conference to defend the charity’s actions. “Have we made mistakes before? Yes,” Jean said. “Did I ever use Yele money for personal benefits? Absolutely not. Yele’s books are open and transparent.”

TMZ reports that only $5.1 million went to relief efforts in Haiti, and the rest of the spending is questionable.

A company called P&A Construction run by Warnel Pierre, Jean’s brother-in law, received $353,983. Also, a company called Amisphere Farm Labor Inc. in Florida received $1,008,000, a company that never filed the required paperwork to become a legitimate company. Moreover, the company’s head purchased three properties in Florida last year.

Jean has since issued a statement defending his charity, saying, "The percentage of funds used is consistent with NGOs and Not For Profits operating in Haiti at the time. I have acknowledged that Yele has made mistakes in the past, including being late in IRS filings, but that is old news."