The wife of George Zimmerman, the accused killer in the Trayvon Martin case, has been arrested and is being charged with perjury for lying to a judge about the couple's finances during his bond hearing, authorities say.
An order issued Tuesday by assistant state attorney John Guy charged Shellie Zimmerman for knowingly making false statements during the April hearing.
According to the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, deputies were alerted by prosecutors that a warrant had been issued for Shellie Zimmerman, 25. She was arrested about 3:30 p.m. "at the location she was residing in Seminole County," deputies said in a statement.
Shellie Zimmerman, 25, was released on $1,000 bond. George Zimmerman has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the teen's slaying and had been out on the bond after the April hearing. However, Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester on June 4 revoked the bond and ordered Zimmerman returned to the Seminole County Jail. Lester in a strongly worded ruling said the Zimmermans lied about how much money they had.
An arrest affidavit for Shellie Zimmerman said that records show in April she transferred more than $85,500 from her bank account into her husband's account. The affidavit also said that jail call records show that George Zimmerman instructed her to "pay off all the bills," including an American Express and Sam's Club card.
A state attorney investigator met with credit union officials and learned that she had transfer control of his account.
Zimmerman's attorney Mark O'Mara has said the Zimmermans were confused and fearful when they misled court officials about how much money they had.
George Zimmerman, a 28-year-old neighborhood watch volunteer, has maintained since the Feb. 26 shooting says he shot Martin in self-defense because the unarmed 17-year-old was beating him up after confronting Zimmerman about following him in a gated community outside Orlando.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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