Federal law enforcement today dropped a bombshell, announcing the arrest of Cody Holmes, 31, of Beverly Hills, for what could be the largest scam to ever defraud public homelessness funds. Holmes, the former CFO at downtown Los Angeles-based affordable housing developer Shangri-La Industries LLC, stands accused of mail fraud, a felony that carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
“Accountability for the misuse of billions of tax dollars intended to combat homeless starts today,” said Acting United States Attorney Bill Essayli. “These two criminal cases announced are only the tip of the iceberg.”
Holmes is alleged to have submitted fake bank records to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) showing approximately $160 million under Shangri-La’s control, purportedly for fulfilling homelessness housing projects. The truth? The bank accounts were non-existent.
“In both of these cases, defendants took advantage of funds allocated to assist the homeless, some of the most vulnerable people in society,” said Akil Davis, the FBI’s Los Angeles Field Office Assistant Director. “The FBI is committed to finding perpetrators of this insidious fraud.”
The IRS-CI and FHFA-OIG are also on board, with Special Agent in Charge Tyler Hatcher stating, “Today’s actions show our commitment to ensuring the public that we will investigate missing funds intended to benefit some of the most vulnerable Californians.”
Holmes is expected to appear this afternoon in United States District Court in downtown Los Angeles. No plea will be taken today.
Related Federal Cases
- Artful Dodge: Medicare Fraud Case Closed · Pennsylvania
- Tax Fixer Gets 18 Months for $1.2M Fraud Scheme · Alaska
- McKenzie Earley’s $10M Fraud Conviction · California
- Phelan Sentenced for $17.4M Loan Fraud in MD · Maryland
- Tyrone Bradshaw Sentenced for Sex Offender Registration Fraud · Louisiana
Key Facts
- State: California
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Drug Trafficking|Fraud & Financial Crimes|Public Corruption
- Source: Official Source ↗
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