Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOHN TRASACCO, 50, of West Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to 96 months of imprisonment, followed by five years of supervised release, for conspiracy and fraud offenses related to a scheme to steal COVID-19 relief funds from the City of West Haven. According to the evidence presented during a trial in this…

St. Thomas, VI – Dozens of federal Inspector General officials gathered in St. Thomas on March 22-23, 2023, for the first Virgin Islands Office of Inspector General Spring Symposium. The federal oversight and law enforcement officials spent two days collaborating and sharing information as part of their ongoing commitment to protect federal funds awarded to the Virgin Islands. “As a result of Hurricanes Irma and Maria and the COVID-19 pandemic…

Are you being sexually harassed by your housing provider? HUD OIG is taking action to combat sexual harassment and other sexual misconduct in HUD housing by vigorously pursuing those who engage in this unlawful conduct. Fair housing is your right. No one should have to live in fear to have a place to live. Report sexual misconduct to HUD OIG.

Written Testimony of Inspector General Rae Oliver Davis, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development before the U.S. House of Representatives, Committee on Appropriations, Subcommittee on Transportation, and Housing and Urban Development: “Oversight Hearing – Inspectors General of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and Department of Transportation." link to the hearing can be found here.

  Some landlords participating in HUD’s rental assistance programs have targeted vulnerable populations receiving assistance with financial fraud schemes that charge more in rent or other fees for housing services than they are allowed. These schemes take valuable dollars out of the pockets of low-income households by preying on their housing insecurity and also reduces the number of families that HUD’s important program can serve.

Vanessa Roberts Avery, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that JOHN BERNARDO, 66, of West Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Omar A. Williams in Hartford to 13 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for participating in a scheme to steal COVID-19 relief funds from the City of West Haven. According to court documents and statements made in court, Bernardo was employed…

PORTLAND, Maine: A Berwick woman was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Portland for Social Security fraud and theft of public money. Chief U.S. District Judge Jon D. Levy sentenced Andreanna Politano, 60, to three years of probation. She was also ordered to pay $49,976.38 in restitution to the Social Security Administration (SSA) and $9,164.00 in restitution to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).…

PITTSBURGH, PA - A resident of Aliquippa, Pennsylvania, pleaded guilty in federal court to charges of bank fraud and conspiracy, Acting United States Attorney Troy Rivetti announced today. Lee Ann Benninghoff, age 44, pleaded guilty to two counts before United States District Judge Marilyn J. Horan. In connection with the guilty plea, the court was advised that Benninghoff owned and operated Complete Escrow and Bella Casa Realty. From February…

CHICAGO — A federal jury has found a former Illinois attorney and real estate developer guilty on two counts of embezzlement, six counts of bankruptcy fraud, and eight counts of tax fraud following a nearly four week-long trial in Chicago. Evidence at trial revealed that ROBERT KOWALSKI, 61, of Chicago was a close associate of John Gembara, the former President of Washington Federal Bank for Savings (“WFBS”), a small bank in Chicago’s…

WASHINGTON DC— Today, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General issued an evaluation report about HUD’s processes for monitoring children with elevated blood lead levels (EBLL) and lead-based paint hazards in public housing.The evaluation examined HUD’s processes for addressing cases of EBLLs in children residing in public housing determined the effectiveness of two trackers that HUD uses to ensure appropriate action is…

BECKLEY, W.Va. Laquenta Lowe, 45, of Beckley, pleaded guilty today to conversion of public money exceeding $1,000. Lowe admitted to stealing at least $7,978.91 in federal funds while employed by the Raleigh County Housing Authority (RCHA). According to court documents and statements made in court, Lowe was chief financial officer and accountant for the RCHA from July 1, 2018 through May 31, 2019. Lowe was executive director of the RCHA from…

      WASHINGTON DC — Inspector General Rae Oliver Davis issues the following statement on the issuance of notification of inquiry to the Department concerning the circumstances resulting in the relocation of residents at Peppertree Apartments: “Promoting safety in HUD housing is a top priority for my office. Everyone deserves to live in a decent, safe, and sanitary home without the fear of being exposed to safety hazards that…

DETROIT – Three family members of the former executive director of the St. Clair Housing Commission, Lorena Loren, were sentenced today to federal prison after having pleaded guilty to various federal offenses due to their involvement in Loren’s fraudulent scheme to steal money from the Section 8 program of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced. Ison was joined in the…

      WASHINGTON DC—Apex Waukegan LLC (Apex), a multifamily housing landlord receiving rental assistance subsidies from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), and Integra Affordable Management LLC (Integra), Apex’s affiliated management agent, were ordered to pay $1,258,671 in civil money penalties for breaching their Housing Assistance Payment Contract (HAP contract) by knowingly failing to maintain…

  A message from the IG: HUD did not sufficiently flag unacceptable physical condition scores to assess its controlling participants.

Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced that LEROY GIBBS was sentenced yesterday by U.S. District Judge Colleen McMahon to 33 months in prison, and JULIO FIGUEROA was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Denise L. Cote to 15 months in prison, for accepting bribes in exchange for awarding no-bid contracts at the New York City Housing Authority (“NYCHA”) facilities where they worked. …

HOUSTON – A 61-year-old man has been sent to federal prison following his conviction of money laundering as well as conspiracy to commit and committing wire fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani. A federal jury deliberated for approximately half a day following an eight-day trial before returning a guilty verdict Sept. 20, 2022, on all counts against Clarence Roland III. Today, U.S. District Judge Lee H. Rosenthal ordered Roland to…

BOSTON – A Holyoke landlord, Carmen Manix, has agreed to pay a $15,000 settlement for submitting false claims to the government after receiving illegal utility payments from a low-income tenant while participating in a federal housing subsidy program. The Federal Housing Choice Voucher Program, commonly referred to as “Section 8,” provides federal funding to low-income individuals to help them secure safe and affordable housing. The Department…

DETROIT – Three family members of the former executive director of the St. Clair Housing Commission, Lorena Loren, were sentenced today to federal prison after having pleaded guilty to various federal offenses due to their involvement in Loren’s fraudulent scheme to steal money from the Section 8 program of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), United States Attorney Dawn N. Ison announced. Ison was joined in the…

BOSTON – A Wakefield man was sentenced today in federal court in Boston for a mortgage fraud scheme involving at least two dozen fraudulent loan transactions and $4.3 million in losses to lenders. Joseph Bates III, 42, was sentenced by U.S. Senior District Court Judge Douglas P. Woodlock to 18 months in prison and three years of supervised release. In October 2018, Bates pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, three counts of wire fraud…