MOBILE, AL – A Mobile woman was sentenced today to 14 months in federal prison for stealing rent money for government-assisted low-income housing.
According to court documents, Shannon Caruso, age 48, of Mobile, was employed as a property manager by two different government housing authorities that providing affordable housing to low-income individuals in the Mobile area. Caruso admitted that while working for both housing authorities, she fraudulently convinced renters that they needed to make rent checks out to her or to give her their rent checks with the payee line blank. Rather than depositing this rent money with her employer, Caruso stole the money for her own use. The two housing authorities absorbed the losses due to Caruso’s theft and did not evict any of the renters who reasonably believed they were properly paying rent by giving their checks to Caruso.
U.S. District Court Judge Terry F. Moorer expounded on how utterly selfish Caruso’s crimes were and how they likely affected innocent people who were already living in a difficult financial situation. Accordingly, Judge Moorer sentenced Caruso to 14 months in federal prison, which was the high end of her advisory sentencing guidelines range.
“Shannon Caruso admitted to using her position as a property manager to exploit the vulnerability of elderly and low-income individuals by stealing their monthly Housing Choice Voucher rent payments and depositing them into her personal bank account,” said Special Agent-in-Charge Jerome Winkle with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General. “HUD OIG will continue to work with its law enforcement partners to diligently pursue and hold accountable individuals who prey on vulnerable members of our community.”
“Stealing the rent money of vulnerable victims was a particularly egregious way for this crook to earn her sentence in federal prison,” said Sean P. Costello, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Alabama. “Together with our law enforcement partners, we will hold to account anyone who takes advantage of the citizens of south Alabama.”
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, Birmingham Office investigated the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Tandice Blackwood prosecuted the case on behalf of the United States.