Christopher Montealegre, Theft of Government Funds, Texas 2024

Defendant Admits to Hurricane Harvey House Fraud

A 45-year-old Houston area resident, Christopher Montealegre, has pleaded guilty to fraudulently applying for and receiving a newly rebuilt house worth $314,000, announced U.S. Attorney Alamdar S. Hamdani.

The house was rebuilt using federal funds intended for victims of Hurricane Harvey, which devastated the Houston area in 2017. Montealegre admitted to one count of theft of government funds after he knowingly applied for relief through a program administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD).

Congress allocated funds to Texas as a special appropriation associated with a Presidentially Declared Disaster in the wake of Hurricane Harvey. The funds help to support communities working to build stronger and more resilient neighborhoods.

“Christopher Montealegre exploited a program intended to assist vulnerable victims of Hurricane Harvey and used those funds for his own personal enrichment,” said Hamdani. “Public resources for disaster relief should go to the victims that actually need them, not to enrich private actors like Montealegre.”

The investigation was conducted by HUD-OIG, and the case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Karen Lansden and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Shalimar Addy.

U.S. District Judge Keith Ellison accepted the plea and has set sentencing for Aug 8. At that time, Montealegre faces up to 10 years in federal prison and a possible $250,000 maximum fine.

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