Former City Employees and Landlords Sentenced for Section 8 Housing Fraud
ATLANTA – Shantel Bowens, Debbie Bailey, and Babatunde ‘Babs’ Abass have been sentenced for stealing $230,000 from the federal Housing Choice Voucher Program, known as ‘Section 8,’ which provides rental assistance to low-income families.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the defendants used their positions in the City of Marietta’s Housing Choice Voucher Program to identify and falsify records of former Section 8 tenants, linking them to Abass and a fourth defendant, Tunji ‘Chris’ Imoukhuede, who were enrolled as landlords in the program.
Bowens and Bailey selected tenants who were eligible for the largest Section 8 payments, based on their employment and family size, and altered computer records to link them to Abass and Imoukhuede. The falsified records then indicated that the former tenants were now residing in properties owned by Abass and Imoukhuede.
The scheme, which took place from January 2011 through June 2013, resulted in the four defendants obtaining over $230,000 as a result of their fraudulent actions. In addition, Bowens lived rent-free in Section 8 housing under false pretenses, falsifying computer records to receive a rental subsidy.
Bowens, 43, of Atlanta, Ga., has been sentenced to two years and two months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $275,871. Bailey, 41, of Rome, Ga., was sentenced to one year and two months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $234,977. Abass, 48, of Mableton, Ga., was sentenced to ten months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release, and ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $80,349.
The case was investigated by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the City of Marietta, and the Marietta Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Shanya J. Dingle prosecuted the case.
This case is part of efforts underway by President Obama’s Financial Fraud Enforcement Task Force, which was created in November 2009 to combat financial crimes. The task force is dedicated to protecting taxpayers’ dollars and ensuring HUD programs are free from fraud, waste, and abuse.
Key Facts
- State: Georgia
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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