Anita Lee | SunHerald.com  

A Hurricane Katrina-recovery ambassador to President George W. Bush and the nation, Mayor Brent Warr says his work and the city’s will continue as prosecutors prepare a federal case against him and his wife, Laura, on 16 charges of Katrina fraud.

The Warrs cried quietly Wednesday in the corridor of the U.S. District courthouse just blocks from City Hall after they were each indicted on 16 charges: one count of conspiracy, one count of fraud, two counts of theft of public funds, four counts of making false statements, three counts of wire fraud and five counts of mail fraud.

The indictment says the Warrs reconstructed their beachfront mansion with $222,798 in ill-gotten gains from FEMA, HUD and Lexington Insurance Co. from September 2005 to March 2007. The Warrs received the maximum $150,000 HUD homeowners grant through the Mississippi Development Authority, $9,558 in FEMA funds and $88,440.10 from Lexington Insurance Co., the indictment says.

 Prosecutors contend they were not entitled to the federal money because they had not moved into the beachfront home before the Aug. 29, 2005, hurricane. The government also says they misrepresented their losses to Lexington.

The Warrs, their hands clasped in front of them, pleaded innocent to the charges before U.S. Magistrate Judge John M. Roper.

Gulfport’s first couple potentially faces maximum penalties of 210 years each in prison and fines of up to $4 million each. The government also is seeking forfeiture of their Katrina recovery and insurance funds, or assets of equal value.

Outside the courthouse, Warr, 45, said: “Laura and I have entered our plea. It speaks for itself. We are not going to make public comments about this case. We are going to keep our comments in the courtroom where they belong.

“The main thing that’s most important right now, and I just want to say, is that I’m going to take care of and protect my family.” Brent and Laura Warr, 43, have two children.

Their trial is tentatively scheduled for April 6. Their attorney, Joe Sam Owen of Gulfport, told the judge that the Warrs would have separate attorneys by Monday. There is a potential conflict of interest when a couple is represented by the same attorney. The judge pointed out that a plea might be offered to one defendant with less involvement, which an attorney representing both of them could not negotiate.

Owen said after the hearing that the indictment has no relation to Warr’s job as mayor, which he will continue to perform as the municipal election season approaches. Warr said later in the day that he still plans to seek re-election.