Former Winston-Salem City Council Member Derwin Montgomery arrested for probation violation

Former Winston-Salem City Council Member Derwin Montgomery has been arrested for failing to make restitution payments to the Bethesda Center for the Homeless. The payments were a condition of his probation after he was convicted of stealing from the organization in 2023.

Montgomery was accused of charging personal expenses to the center while serving as its executive director. He was sentenced to five years of probation and ordered to pay more than $38,000 in restitution, along with a $22,000 fine.

His probation was revoked this week after a judge found he had not made the required payments. He was taken into custody following a court hearing on Wednesday and is currently being held at the Forsyth County Jail.

Montgomery served on the Winston-Salem City Council from 2009 to 2018, and in the North Carolina House from 2018 to 2020.