The Municipality of Ponce, PR, Needs to Improve Controls over Section 8 Program
As part of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of the Inspector General's (OIG) strategic plan, we audited the Municipality of Ponce (authority) Section 8 Housing Choice Voucher program. Our audit objectives were to determine whether Section 8 units met housing quality standards in accordance with HUD requirements and whether the authority properly paid program landlords and properly determined housing assistance…
November 06, 2007
Report
#2008-AT-1001
The Municipality of Toa Baja, Puerto Rico, Needs to Improve Its Community Development Block Grant Program Administration
April 10, 2007
Report
#2007-AT-1007
The Puerto Rico Department of Housing, San Juan, Puerto Rico, Did Not Effectively Administer Its Section 8 Housing Program
March 28, 2007
Report
#2007-AT-1005
Man Indicted and Arrested for Child Exploitation
FBI continues with the investigation and is searching for possible victims.SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – A federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging Ángel Alexis Vázquez Sánchez, 25, of Jayuya, PR, for child exploitation.According to court documents, from December 2021 throughout May 2023, Ángel Alexis Vázquez Sánchez sexually exploited four different minor females, between the ages of 12 and 16, with the…
Press release
March 05, 2024
Two Business Owners Pleaded Guilty to Federal Program Theft in Relation to the Misappropriation of Operational Funds from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico –Martin D. Cruz-Vázquez, President of FiveStar Pest Control Inc. (FiveStar), and Luis O. Agosto-Meléndez, President of CoolBreeze Air Conditioning, Inc. (CoolBreeze) pleaded guilty to the theft of federal program funds provided by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the administration of Public Housing Projects (PHPs) in Puerto Rico.According to court documents, Martin D. Cruz-Vázquez…
Press release
January 22, 2024
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development Office of Inspector General Audit of the Puerto Rico Department of Housing's Fraud Risk Management Practices
WASHINGTON DC— Today, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued an audit report that found the Puerto Rico Department of Housing’s (PRDOH) needs to enhance its fraud risk management practices to better protect over $20 billion in grant funding provided through HUD’s disaster recovery programs in response to Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
HUD OIG’s audit found that PRDOH’s fraud risk…
Press release
October 31, 2023
Walter Pierluisi Isern, Eduardo Pierluisi Isern, and American Management and Administration Corporation Sentenced for Federal Program Theft in Excess of $3.7 Million
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico –Today, United States District Court Judge Camille Vélez Rivé sentenced Walter Pierluisi Isern, Eduardo Pierluisi Isern, and American Management and Administration Corporation (AMAC). The defendants pleaded guilty in April to one count of Theft of Federal Program Funds in relation to the misappropriation of operational funds provided by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the…
Press release
July 11, 2023
40 Members of a Violent Gang Charged With Drug Trafficking and Firearms Violations in San Juan, Puerto Rico
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – On June 8, 2023, a federal grand jury in the District of Puerto Rico returned an indictment charging 40 violent gang members from the municipality of San Juan with conspiracy to possess with intent to distribute, possession and distribution of controlled substances, and firearms violations, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, United States Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico. This investigation was led by the…
Press release
June 14, 2023
Walter Pierluisi Isern, Eduardo Pierluisi Isern, and American Management and Administration Corporation Pleaded Guilty to Federal Program Theft in Excess of $3.7 Million and Agreed to a Restitution Order for All Illegal Proceeds
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico –Walter Pierluisi Isern, Eduardo Pierluisi Isern, and American Management and Administration Corporation (AMAC) pleaded guilty today to one count of Theft of Federal Program Funds in relation to the misappropriation of operational funds provided by the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) for the administration of public housing projects (PHPs) in Puerto Rico.
According to court…
Press release
April 13, 2023
Former Municipal Director of Finance Pleads Guilty to Misappropriation of $2.5 Million
SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico – Defendant Victor Cruz-Quintero pleaded guilty before United States Magistrate Judge Marcos E. López to one count of misappropriation of government funds from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Section 108 Loan Guarantee Program, announced W. Stephen Muldrow, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.
On or about October 28, 2014, defendant Victor Cruz-Quintero used his position as…
Press release
July 15, 2022
Defendants Sentenced for Scheme to Defraud Local Housing Programs of Over $100,000
HONOLULU, Hawaii – Raelene Rodrigues, 62, of Honolulu, Hawaii was sentenced today. Rodrigues was the last of four defendants convicted and sentenced in connection with charges involving a scheme to defraud federally funded local housing programs for over $100,000 from approximately April 2015 to August 2017. Co-defendants Leopoldo Bitte, Jr., 38, of Hilo Hawaii, Gregory Lau, 40, of San Leandro, California, and separately-charged defendant…
Press release
February 22, 2022