2024 Guardian Award: Lizzie Johnson and Jeff German

The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE) awards individuals and ACFE Chapters annually for their commitment and impact on the anti-fraud field. The Guardian Award is bestowed on a journalist whose determination, perseverance and commitment to the truth have contributed significantly to the fight against fraud. This award recognizes those who have made extraordinary efforts to uncover and report on fraudulent activities, often at great personal risk. 

This year, the ACFE is honored to award Lizzie Johnson and Jeff German with the Guardian Award. Their remarkable contributions to investigative journalism have exemplified the highest standards of integrity and dedication. 

In 2022, Las Vegas Review-Journal investigative journalist Jeff German began investigating a $500 million Ponzi scheme targeting The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints communities. Before he could complete his story, he was murdered by a local official who was the subject of his reporting. After his death, Washington Post reporter Lizzie Johnson took up his mantle and finished the story. The ACFE will honor German posthumously for his relentless pursuit of fraud and corruption through his 40-year reporting career. The Guardian Award will be presented to Johnson at the 35th Annual ACFE Global Fraud Conference, where she will accept it on behalf of both herself and German. 

Johnson started at the Washington Post in 2021 as an enterprise reporter and previously worked at The San Francisco Chronicle, among other publications. She has reported from across America as well as the front lines of the war in Ukraine, demonstrating her versatility and commitment to uncovering the truth in diverse and challenging environments. 

Johnson is a three-time finalist for the Livingston Awards, one of the top honors for journalists under 35. Her first book, “Paradise: One Town’s Struggle to Survive an American Wildfire,” is about the blaze that leveled the Northern California town of Paradise. It is currently being developed as a feature film, further highlighting her impactful storytelling and the significance of her work.