U.S. Attorney’s Office announces criminal task force to investigate fraud and corruption involving homelessness funds across seven counties
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – On Tuesday, U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli announced the formation of the Homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force to investigate fraud, waste, abuse, and corruption involving funds dedicated to homelessness across all seven counties of the Central District.
The task force will gather federal prosecutors from the Major Frauds Section, the Public Corruption and Civil Rights Section, and the Civil Division's Civil Fraud Section of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Central District of California stated a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Other federal agencies including the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General, and Criminal Investigation staff from the Internal Revenue Service will also be part of the task force added the U.S. Attorney's Office.
"IRS Criminal Investigation is uniquely poised to track any funds granted through various federal programs," shared Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher of the Internal Revenue Service's Criminal Investigation Los Angeles Field Office. "We look forward to working with our federal partners to ensure taxpayer and donor funds are spent in accordance with their original intended purposes."
According to the U.S. Attorney's Office, the Homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force will investigate crime related to the "misappropriation of federal tax dollars intended to alleviate homelessness in the Central District of California" and will prioritize a review of federal, state, and local programs receiving federal funding.
"California has spent more than $24 billion over the past five years to address homelessness," said United States Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli. "But officials have been unable to account for all the expenditures and outcomes, and the homeless crisis has only gotten worse. Taxpayers deserve answers for where and how their hard-earned money has been spent. If state and local officials cannot provide proper oversight and accountability, we will do it for them. If we discover any federal laws were violated, we will make arrests."
The task force will also investigate fraud schemes involving private donations intended to support and provide services to the unhoused population in all seven counties of the Central District of California added the U.S. Attorney's Office.
"Any exploitation of the homelessness crisis via the theft of funds intended to improve conditions cannot and will not be tolerated," stated Akil Davis, the Assistant Director in Charge of the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office. "The FBI is proud to join the newly formed task force and will continue to investigate fraudulent schemes and corrupt officials who misappropriate government funding or private donations intended to aid those in need."
Your News Channel reached out to local law enforcement agencies about the announcement and their responses will be included to this article as they are received.
San Luis Obispo County District Attorney Dan Dow issued the following statement in response to Tuesday's announcement, "The District Attorney’s Office takes all fraud and corruption very seriously and stands ready to assist the United States Attorney if called upon. Our Public Integrity Unit was created in 2015 shortly after I took office and we have since had numerous successful prosecutions in both civil and criminal court. A notable and recent public integrity prosecution was People v. Norman Hibble. Mr. Hibble is now serving a six-year prison sentence after his 2024 conviction for embezzlement of approximately $500,000 in public funds as a county employee."
