SOUTH BEND – Tonya Robinson, 61, of South Bend, Indiana, was sentenced to 108 months in prison, 2 years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $3,236,949.97 in restitution to the victims of her offense.
Robinson was found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, six counts of bank fraud, one count of wire fraud, and one count of federal program theft on November 1, 2023, following an eight-day jury trial, announced United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson.
According to documents in the case, the Housing Authority of South Bend (HASB) provides housing opportunities and services to the South Bend community, managing more than 800 public housing residential units. From approximately 2015 through 2019, Robinson served first as Interim Executive Director and then Executive Director of the HASB. She was found guilty of conspiring with employees at the HASB and with outside contractors to defraud the HASB.
The fraud scheme involved the issuance of HASB payment checks to four outside contractors for contracting work that had not actually occurred. These contractors would then deposit the HASB payment checks, withdraw a portion of each check in cash, and hand-deliver the cash back to co-conspirators at the HASB’s main office. Robinson was involved in creating hundreds of fraudulent documents to conceal the fraud.
“Defrauding taxpayers in schemes that divert federal funds from their intended purpose will not be tolerated,” said United States Attorney Clifford D. Johnson. “Ms. Robinson’s criminal scheme injured both federal taxpayers and South Bend Housing Authority tenants because federal monies that were intended to keep those housing units safe and habitable were not available for that purpose.”
Robinson’s co-defendants who were previously convicted, received the following sentences: Tyreisha Robinson was sentenced to a total term of time served, 2 years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $363,122.00 in restitution to victims of the offense. Douglas Donley was sentenced to a total term of 27 months in prison, 2 years of supervised release, and was ordered to pay $303,920.00 in restitution to victims of the offense. The sentencing of Robinson’s co-defendant, Archie Robinson III, was not reported.
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Key Facts
- State: Indiana
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Public Corruption|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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