Former Bank Executive Sentenced for $4.1 Million SBA Fraud, $18.2 Million FHA Fraud
(Source: USAO, Western District of Missouri) JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that the former vice president of a Pulaski County, Mo., bank was sentenced in federal court today for leading a $4.1 million conspiracy to defraud the Small Business Administration, as well as participating in a separate and unrelated $18.2 million scheme to defraud the federal government…
Press release
August 01, 2016
Orleans Parish judge on board of directors for unsafe homes, report says
(Source: WDSU-TV NBC) NEW ORLEANS —Dangerous and unsafe living conditions for the elderly and disabled in New Orleans are coming to light in a lengthy report at Satchmo Plaza in Central City.
The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development issued multiple violations for an apartment complex for the elderly and disabled.
The complex has dozens of units and is operated by the Central City Housing Corp.
They said one of the people on…
Article
August 01, 2016
Former Morgan City housing authority executive director, employees sentenced for theft of half a million dollars
(Source: USAO, LA) LAFAYETTE, La. – United States Attorney Stephanie A. Finley announced today that the former executive director of the Morgan City Housing Authority and three former employees were sentenced for a conspiracy related to theft of half a million dollars.
Charles E. Spann, 78, of Kingsport, Tenn., was sentenced to 36 months in prison, three years of supervised release and ordered to pay $111,657.47 restitution on one count of…
Press release
July 25, 2016
Former Framingham Housing Authority employee charged with $70K theft
(Source: milforddailynews.com) FRAMINGHAM – A former Framingham Housing Authority accountant, who doctored tenants' computer records and skimmed money from their rent payments, faces federal charges she stole more than $70,000 in cash over the course of a year and a half, authorities said Tuesday.
Framingham Police arrested Rosa Famania, 33, at her 6 Dennis Road, Milford, home on Tuesday on behalf of federal authorities, who had obtained a…
Article
July 20, 2016
Former Framingham Housing Authority Employee Charged
(USAO, MA) BOSTON – A Milford woman was charged today in U.S. District Court in Boston in connection with stealing over $70,000 in rent payments owed to the Framingham Housing Authority (FHA).
Rosa A. Famania, 33, was charged in a criminal complaint with one count of theft concerning a program receiving federal funds.
According to the complaint, in February 2010, Famania began working for FHA as an accounting assistant,…
Press release
July 19, 2016
Ringleader of Mortgage Loan Modification Scheme Sentenced to More Than 9 Years in Federal Prison
(USAO, CT) ARIA MALEKI, 33, of Santa Ana, Calif., was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill in Bridgeport to 112 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for heading a mortgage loan modification scheme that defrauded more than 1,000 struggling homeowners across the United States.
“This defendant presided over a scheme that preyed on struggling homeowners in Connecticut and across the United…
Press release
July 18, 2016
Former West Haven Housing Authority Director Sentenced to Prison for Receiving $1.5 Million in Bribes
Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that MICHAEL SIWEK, 56, of North Haven, was sentenced today by U.S. District Judge Michael P. Shea in Hartford to 48 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for receiving approximately $1.5 million in bribes while serving as the executive director of the West Haven Housing Authority, and for failing to pay taxes on the illegal…
Press release
July 17, 2016
Former West Haven Housing Authority executive director sentenced to 4 years for conspiracy, bribery and tax evasion
HARTFORD >> Almost two years after a West Haven man waived his right to an indictment and pleaded guilty to federal conspiracy, bribery and tax evasion charges, he was sentenced in federal court to 48 months of imprisonment followed by three years of supervised release.
Michael Siwek, 56, also was ordered to pay restitution of $1,503,096.91 and more than $360,000 to the IRS.
Siwek was executive director of the West Haven Housing Authority…
Article
July 17, 2016
Former Alabama attorney pleads guilty to defrauding HUD
A former Montgomery attorney pleaded guilty on Thursday to charges related to defrauding the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development.
Christopher B. Pitts, 46, now of Atlanta, pleaded guilty to wire fraud affecting a financial institution, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Alabama.
Pitts served as a closing attorney for the sales of all homes owned by HUD in northern and central Alabama between…
Article
July 17, 2016
Commercial Supply Company Owner Gets Four Years In Prison For Defrauding Public And Private Customers Out Of More Than $700,000
TRENTON, N.J. – A part owner of Bayway Lumber, a Linden, New Jersey, company that sold commercial and industrial products to numerous public and private entities, was sentenced today to 48 months in prison for his role in a scheme to defraud customers out of $708,386, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Robert R. Dattilo, 61, previously pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Peter G. Sheridan to an information charging him with one…
Press release
July 11, 2016
Former Youngstown man sentenced to more than three years in prison for bank fraud involving Mahoning County homes
(USAO, OH) A former Youngstown man was sentenced to more than three years in prison for crimes related to the purchase of a dozen homes in Mahoning County, said Carole S. Rendon, Acting U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Steven D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland office.
R. Allen Sinclair, 52, of Suwanee, Georgia, was sentenced to 41 months in prison and ordered to pay approximately $830,000 in…
Press release
July 10, 2016
Former Commissioner Of Mount Vernon Water Department Sentenced To 15 Months In Prison For Bribery
(USAO, NY) Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced today that ANTHONY BOVE, the former Commissioner of the Board of Water Supply of the City of Mount Vernon (the “Water Department”), was sentenced today to 15 months in prison for soliciting a $10,000 bribe from an employee of the Water Department, and lying to federal law enforcement officers when BOVE was interviewed during the investigation.…
Press release
July 10, 2016
Investigation by CHA and HUD Inspectors General ends with guilty plea and restitution to CHA by former contractor
CHICAGO – July 11, 2016 – (RealEstateRama) — The Chicago Housing Authority will receive restitution for money stolen by a former contractor and her husband after the pair pleaded guilty to stealing funds intended for the Housing Choice Voucher (HCV) program, a crime that was exposed following an investigation by the CHA’s Office of the Inspector General.
Former contractor Charlene Potts and her husband Scott Washington pleaded guilty in Cook…
Article
July 10, 2016
Former Contractor Of Newark Watershed Conservation And Development Corporation Admits Role In Conspiracy To Fraudulently Bill The Agency
NEWARK, N.J. – A West Orange, New Jersey, man who was the sole proprietor of two companies that purportedly provided printing and digital marketing services to the Newark Watershed Conservation and Development Corporation (NWCDC) today admitted his role in a conspiracy to fraudulently bill the NWCDC for more than $110,000 for work that was never performed, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Kevin Gleaton, 52, pleaded guilty before U.S.…
Press release
July 10, 2016
Indiana prison unwittingly hires ex-con as guard
A New York parole board freed Kwame Abdul-Haqq in 2004 after he served time for attempted murder, robbery, burglary and kidnapping. Just three years later, Abdul-Haqq was hired by the state of Indiana — as a prison guard.
The 52-year-old Anderson man was charged Wednesday in a federal indictment with defrauding the state of Indiana out of the $175,000 he was paid when he worked as an officer at the Pendleton Correctional Facility, a maximum…
Article
July 06, 2016
Anderson man indicted on fraud charges
Indianapolis – United States Attorney Josh J. Minkler announced today the indictment of an Anderson man on six counts of wire fraud, two counts of making false statements on a loan or credit application, and one count of making false declarations before the court. Kwame Abdul-Haqq, 52, Anderson, was indicted by a federal grand jury in Indianapolis.
Robert Borum has a lengthy criminal history in New York, including convictions for attempted…
Press release
July 06, 2016
Real Estate Agent Pleads Guilty in Mortgage Fraud Scheme
(Source: USAO, MD) Baltimore, Maryland – Real estate agent Christopher A. Kwegan, age 59, of Randallstown, Maryland pleaded guilty today to charges arising from the fraudulent purchase of a Baltimore City property using fraudulent loan documentation and a straw purchaser.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein; Special Agent in Charge Kevin Perkins of the Federal Bureau of…
Press release
July 04, 2016
Chester duo pleads guilty in conspiracy to intimidate judges, police, government officials
(Source: phillyvoice.com) Two Chester men pleaded guilty on Wednesday to a multi-year conspiracy that involved filing false deeds on Delaware County homes and false tax forms against judges, law enforcement and other government employees in an effort to intimidate them, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced.
Steven Hameed, 57, and Darnell Young, 48, both of Chester, pleaded guilty to all charges spelled out in an indictment detailing their…
Article
June 29, 2016
Seattle Area Man who Claimed Fictitious Twin Brother to Collect Additional Federal Benefits Sentenced to 30 Months in Prison
(USAO, WA) A SeaTac man who used a second identity to defraud federal and state public assistance programs for more than 20 years was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Seattle to 30 months in prison, announced U.S. Attorney Annette L. Hayes. TRAVIS EDWARD FISCHER, 49, lived with his girlfriend and three children in SeaTac, while also claiming benefits under the name Edward Travis Fischer in Seattle. By pretending to be two…
Press release
June 23, 2016
Three Charged In HUD House Flipping Scheme
(USAO, IN) HAMMOND- United States Attorney David A. Capp announced that a federal grand jury in Hammond returned an indictment charging three individuals for their part in a house flipping scheme involving Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) properties.
The indictment charges Sergio Garcia, Sr.,46, of Chicago, IL and Sergio Garcia, Jr., 27, of Lowell, IN with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and ten substantive counts of mail fraud…
Press release
June 21, 2016