70 NYCHA Employees Charged in Historic Federal Bribery Bust

BoroPark24 Staff

Federal prosecutors arrested 70 workers and contractors of the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) for alleged corruption and kickback schemes that occurred between 2013 and 2023 at NYCHA facilities.

Prosecutors say that those arrested allegedly demanded about 10% to 20% of a contract value, which averaged between $500 and $2,000 or more. The bribery and extortion efforts allegedly raked in more than $2 million in cash payments for no-bid repair contracts in exchange for giving out more than $13 million worth of work.

The NYCHA is the nation’s largest public housing authority and receives more than $1.5 billion in federal funding each year. Yesterday, it also set a record as “the largest single-day bribery takedown in the history of the Justice Department,”  according to Damian Williams, the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York. The scheme involved nearly a third of New York City’s 335 public housing developments. 

Arrests were made after a year-long investigation for past and present employees residing in all five boroughs of New York and six states,  who “allegedly used their jobs at NYCHA to line their own pockets” on no-bid repairs contracts under $10,000, according to a statement issued by Williams Tuesday.