As many as 70 current and former New York City public housing employees were charged Tuesday with accepting kickbacks from contractors in exchange for awarding city contracts, federal prosecutors in New York said. U.S. Attorney Damian Williams announced the arrests in six states and all five boroughs. Superintendents and assistant superintendents at about 100 New York City public housing buildings collected $2 million in kickbacks from contractors in exchange for being awarded small jobs under $10,000 that did not require a bid. This behavior became a regular practice and was a classic example of pay-to-play. The alleged conduct started in 2013 and ran until 2023. Contractors who failed to pay a kickback were cut out of work. Homeland Security Investigations arrested 65 defendants in six states and all five boroughs.
Federal prosecutors in New York charged about 70 current and former New York City public housing employees with accepting kickbacks from contractors in exchange for awarding city contracts. This conduct was a regular practice and became a classic example of pay-to-play, according to U.S. Attorney Damian Williams. The alleged fraud drove up the costs of small repairs, diverted funds, and eroded the trust of public housing residents. This operation includes the city’s Department of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the U.S. Attorney’s office in Manhattan.
The alleged conduct started in 2013 and ran until 2023. Contractors who did not pay a kickback were excluded from work. Homeland Security Investigations arrested 65 defendants in six states and all five boroughs.ugurations. The charges against the New York City Housing Authority employees present the largest number of federal bribery charges brought on a single day in the Department of three’s history.