The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General audited the City of Thornton (City) to determine whether it used its Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds for projects that met a national objective. The City did not maintain sufficient records demonstrating that each CDBG activity met a national objective. Of the 10 CDBG projects reviewed, the City sufficiently documented that five of the projects…

The U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's (HUD) Office of Inspector General audited the Housing Authority of the City of Brush, Colorado (Authority) because we received information indicating there were irregularities in the Authority's procurement process. Our audit objective was to determine whether the Authority performed contracting activities in accordance with federal procurement requirements. The Authority did not…

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General, audited Adams County, Colorado's HOME Investment Partnerships Program (HOME) to determine whether Adams County appropriately spent and accounted for HOME funds and maintained supporting documentation for its matching contributions reported to HUD. Adams County inappropriately spent or could not support more than $2.1 million in HOME funds. Specifically…

We audited the State of Colorado (State), Division of Housing's (Division) Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) program to determine whether the Division (1) awarded CDBG funds to ineligible projects and (2) properly identified and reported program income data. The Division used CDBG funds for ineligible and questionable projects. This condition occurred because management's main focus was on selecting projects that were for the…

We audited the Housing Choice Voucher (Voucher) and public housing programs at the Woonsocket Housing Authority (Authority) as part of our annual audit plan. The overall objective of the audit was to determine whether the Authority efficiently and effectively administered its Voucher and public housing programs in compliance with its annual contributions contracts and U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) regulations. In…

We audited the Housing Authority of the City of Brighton, Colorado (Authority) in response to a complaint alleging that it did not have an inventory control system and that it used poor procurement practices. Our audit objectives were to determine whether the Authority had an adequate inventory control system and whether it performed contracting activities in accordance with federal procurement requirements. The Authority did not have complete…

HUD-OIG audited the Housing Authority of the City of Colorado Springs, Colorado in response to an anonymous complaint alleging that it improperly awarded all contracts for rehabilitation services to the same bidder, did not properly maintain its waiting list, and inappropriately awarded new Section 8 housing choice vouchers. Our audit objectives were to determine whether the Authority followed federal procurement requirements and its own…

PROVIDENCE – A Johnston-based real estate investment firm, the company’s owner, and an employee of the real estate investment firm were sentenced in U.S. District Court today for conspiring to defraud and for defrauding homeowners, many of whom spoke little or no English, and financial institutions, criminal conduct that caused some homeowners to move out of their property, announced Acting United States Attorney Sara Miron Bloom.In April 2023,…

PROVIDENCE – A North Providence woman convicted of defrauding multiple publicly-funded programs was sentenced on Tuesday to eighteen months in federal prison for making false statements when applying for a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-backed mortgage, a Small Business Association (SBA) loan, and for fraudulently applying for government-funded COVID unemployment benefits, announced United States Attorney Zachary A. Cunha. In March 2022,…

PROVIDENCE – A North Providence woman today admitted in federal court that she provided false information to a mortgage lender when applying for a Federal Housing Administration (FHA)-backed mortgage, and that she fraudulently applied for a COVID Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) and unemployment insurance benefits under both the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act…

PROVIDENCE – A former bookkeeper/office manager who admitted to embezzling more than $740,000 from a Rhode Island law firm that employed her, fraudulently collecting nearly $20,000 in temporary disability insurance payments, and filing fraudulent documents when applying for a mortgage from a Rhode Island bank, was sentenced today to five years in federal prison. According to court documents, Sarah Gaulin, 39, a former employee of the law firm…

PROVIDENCE – A Johnston-based real estate investment firm, the company’s founder, and a person who held himself out to be a negotiator on behalf of financially distressed homeowners but who was, in reality, associated with the real estate investment firm, have been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges they participated in a series of schemes to defraud homeowners and financial institutions. It is alleged in the indictment that members of…

DENVER – United States Attorney Jason R. Dunn announced today that Michael Scott Leslie, age 57, of Boulder, Colorado, pleaded guilty to federal bank fraud and aggravated identity theft charges.  Leslie appeared remotely on a $50,000 unsecured bond, which was continued at the hearing’s conclusion.  The Denver office of the FBI, and the Offices of the Inspector General for both the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and…

PROVIDENCE, R.I. – The mastermind of a mortgage fraud scheme that defrauded financially distressed homeowners, investors, and financial institutions of nearly $1.5 million dollars was sentenced today to more than 13 years in federal prison. Hasan Hussain, 57, of Princeton, N.J., masterminded a scheme that defrauded distressed homeowners, investors, and financial institutions of fees, rental income, mortgage payment funds, property ownership and…