Fraud Investigation At Savannah’s Housing Authority

There’s a crackdown underway at the Housing Authority of Savannah.  Some suspect applications are being re-checked and those caught defrauding the Authority by underreporting income could face some serious consequences. There are more than 45-hundred families living in Savannah’s public and section 8 housing.  Rent in the assisted housing is based on the family’s ability to pay.  Thirty percent of their income as reported on the application - but some of that reporting may not be accurate says Housing Authority Director, Earline Wesley Davis, “We have families who are in need of assisted housing and we have families who are living in assisted housing who don’t deserve to be there.”

A new electronic system is giving the Housing Authority the ability to double-check information they previously had no access to - making it easier to red-flag anything that looks suspect.  So far, Davis says they’ve identified 280 applications that need a closer look, “There are times when people honestly make errors and we make errors also, so we want to verify and be very sure before we begin prosecution of any situation.”  But they will refer cases to the District Attorney for prosecution if the under-reporting amounts to greater than 5-thousand dollars or if it’s less, and a repayment agreement can’t be worked out.  “That carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison, so it’s a very serious felony offense, and if we find that there are other circumstances that suggest we not only charge making false statements to a government agency, but there’s some form of theft involved - and it’s more than $500 - they could spend up to 10 years in prison,” says Savannah District Attorney Larry Chisolm.

The investigations could result in some families no longer qualifying to live in assisted housing.  There are currently nearly 3-thousand families on waiting lists for public and section 8 housing in Savannah.