HGTV celebrities have been involved in legal disputes including Ben Napier, the television series “Hometown” star. Napier was involved in a fraud case along with other prominent people like Brett Favre and Phil Bryant. This involvement has generated media attention and controversy. Although the details of Napier’s involvement in the Hometown HGTV case are still unclear. Thus, it is important to review the events that led up to it. Let’s examine the complexities of this story and learn the real cause of Ben’s involvement in the Hometown HGTV case.
Involvement of Stars in Hometown HGTV Lawsuit
There is evidence that HGTV celebrities are more likely to become involved in scandals that could result in significant legal action from Tarek EI Moussa to Alison Victoria. Did you know that even Hometown’s Ben Napier was embroiled in a lawsuit like that? Although the issue may have subsided since it has been going on for so long, it is still important to bring it up.
The Napier found themselves in the middle of a nightmare when Ben’s name was dragged with the $77million welfare fraud scandal. The controversy largely involved two significant personalities, the ex-governor of Mississippi, Phil Bryant, and former star NFL quarterback Brett Favre.
Surprisingly, the media thought that if they could add a TV celebrity to their roster of well-known politicians and athletes, they would have the perfect scandal trifecta. Now the question arises “Why did Ben’s name get dragged in because the controversy only involved Bryant and Favre?” Stay with us to know the answer to this question.
The Alleged Misconduct and Legal Complications of Brett Favre
Before getting into Ben’s story, let us first find out why Favre’s name came up in this scandal. At his alma college, the University of Southern Mississippi (USM), where FAvre’s daughter played volleyball, the athlete made persistent, and perhaps unlawful, efforts to raise money for the project. Furthermore, the NYTimes claims that Favre spent millions of dollars to build the USM volleyball stadium and invest in a biotech start-up.
According to Mississippifreepress, the Mississippi Department of Human Services sued 38 people and groups, including Favre in May 2022 on allegations. It was further stated that they diverted over $ 77 million intended for the state welfare program to pay for their side projects.
Based on our research, it is stated in Canadianpressnews that The NFL Hall of Famer was requested to repay the state for “speaking fees” totaling over $1 million for motivational speeches he never gave. However, both Favre and Bryant staunchly maintained their innocence, despite several intermediaries involved in the dispute admitting to the allegations.
Ben Napier’s Role in Hometown HGTV Lawsuit
Now come to the answer to the previous question “Where does Ben come into all this?” According to reports in Housebeautiful, HGTV’s Ben Napier assisted with building work. Unfortunately, this has raised doubts and worries regarding the degree of his involvement. Bryant publicly disclosed messages between himself and Favre to prove Ben was unaware of Favre’s use of welfare funds. This occurred on September 24th.
Notably, Journalist Anna Wolfe of Mississippi Today said that the provided texts from 2017 were only a portion of their discussions.
She further reported on Twitter, “Hgtv star and woodworker Ben Napier assisted with constructing the lockers on Bryan’s request, according to the filing”.
Erin Napier responded to the reporter slamming her publicly in a since-deleted post. Erin defended her husband and claimed, “Ben didn’t buy lockers for anyone”. I know you’re all thinking, “If Erin was correct, why did she delete this post?” Well, she must have realized that it could end up causing legal trouble.
In response to Erin’s statement as per Thelist, the governor texted Ben and asked if he could recommend someone to build wooden lockers, and Ben suggested a cabinet maker we work with. After Erin responded, Wolfe clarified on Twitter, “Thank you for responding! The public court file, attributed, and tweet say ‘assisted with’ locker construction, which sounds consistent with your account. I will further clarify now.”
Furthermore, she shared the entire court documents in Mississippifreepress which only stated that Ben Napier ‘assisted with locker construction at Bryan’s request’. The document also mentions Bryant promoting home town in 2019 texting Favre to do the same.
After getting caught up in the Hometown Hgtv lawsuit, Ben posted on his Twitter, which boosted the morale of his fans. He stated a verse from the Bible:
“Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer & petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts & minds in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:6-7”
Bottom Line
Thus Ben was really in a pickle but there was no concrete evidence that he was involved in the Hometown Hgtv lawsuit. So, it is an advantageous outcome that his name has been forgotten from the scandal.