State Rep. Mai Xiong, D-Warren, was delivered bad news from a Wisconsin court earlier this week that may bode ill for her primary bid for reelection next Tuesday.

According to the Macomb Daily News, Xiong paid $310,000 for her 2,425 square-foot Newcastle home in May 2021 “with funds bilked from investors through an alleged Ponzi scheme run by her sister, Kay Yang, in Wisconsin, according to court documents.” A Wisconsin judge has placed a lien on the property, along with six other properties in Wisconsin, Minnesota, and Michigan.

Gov. Gretchen Whitmer on Wednesday endorsed Xiong for reelection for the seat she’s held since a special election this past April, in which she defeated Republican opponent Ronald Singer. She assumed her current office on April 30.

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In next Tuesday’s primary, she faces Democrat opponents Patricia Johnson Singleton and Richard Steenland.

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According to her response to Ballotpedia, Xiong’s key message in this campaign is “Mai Xiong fights for all working families.” Her campaign has received support and funding from Michigan AFL-CIO; the Michigan Education Association; the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades; and the Michigan Regional Council of Carpenters.

In her endorsement, Whitmer noted: “The people of the 13th district need a leader who will bring more economic opportunities to the area and keep their community safe — and that’s @MaiXiongMI. Be sure to vote for Mai in the primary on Tuesday, August 6 and in the general on November 5.”

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Xiong thanked Whitmer for her endorsement.

The former two-term Macomb County commissioner and 12 other defendants were issued, jointly and separately, a $2.4 million default judgment by Judge Sandy Williams in Ozaukee County Circuit Court, according to MDN reporting.

Williams acquiesced to a plea deal that allows the transfer of  property and assets belonging to the plaintiffs, including Xiong, to the defendants.

The Ozaukee Circuit Court case was prompted by allegations that Xiong’s sister Yang fraudulently transferred proceeds from an illegal enterprise to family members. Yang’s oversaw a hedge fund alleged to have violated Wisconsin Statutes Chapter 242 governing the transfer of assets to avoid payment to creditors.

The bilked investors were from mostly senior citizens and recent immigrants of the Hmong-American community of which Xiong and Yang are members. The investors were reputedly guaranteed up to a 30% to 50% return.

Federal complaints were filed against Yang and her fellow defendants in United States District Court Eastern District in Wisconsin by the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. The SEC complaint accused Yang’s companies, Xapphire, LLC and AK Equity, of enticing 70 investors out of more than $16.5 million, which was subsequently used to pay for “travel, casinos, and luxury items.”

Last year, Yang was fined $8.3 million by the SEC and ordered to pay $13.7 million in restitution to her bilked clientele.

In 2023, Yang was ordered to pay $8.3 million to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Judgment in the Commodity Futures Trading Commission ordered her to pay $13.7 million in restitution to investors.