Prosecutors say the former director of a state-wide agency that is supposed to help low-income Georgians secure housing was the ringleader in an elaborate scheme to steal state and federal tax dollars.
Shawn WIlliams ran the Housing Assistance Division, which provides HUD money to help low-income Georgians get a home. In a new RICO indictment, prosecutors allege that Williams was diverting tax dollars to fake businesses for personal gain.
On Friday, Channel 2′s Justin Gray spoke exclusively to Williams, who maintains that she is innocent.
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Gray also talked exclusively to DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston about the criminal charges.
“It’s not just sad and tragic, it’s absolutely criminal,” Boston said. “We take it very seriously when we have people that are taking taxpayer funds that were intended to help the community, and instead they’re taking that money and putting it in their pockets.”
In a 42-page criminal indictment, a grand jury brought a 19-count RICO case against four people: Shawn Williams, Tayao Andrews, Corey Alston and Quinton Tate.
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The indictment alleges that Willaims funneled contracts to fake companies created by accomplices to pay $64,000 to clean a Norcross office that already had cleaning services and $120,000 to build a new software system for the division, which was never made.
“It was fake contracts and fake invoices in order to steal those funds by people that were supposed to be leading state agencies,” Boston said.
Gray caught up with Williams at her Conyers home. She spoke to him for several minutes off-camera where she described a broken department she alleges she was trying to fix.
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“So you maintain you are innocent?” Gray asked.
“Yes,” Williams said.
“These are very serious charges claiming you are using tax dollars for your own gain,” Gray said.
“I agree. And I’m not,” Williams said.
The indictment alleges that it was all part of a well-orchestrated plan. One of the 14 unindicted co-conspirators even allegedly said in a phone conversation that they should plan to “replicate [the fraud] many times” to “other people and other departments” across Georgia State government.
Boston said the scheme was elaborate and intentional.
Williams had moved on to be the chief executive officer of Greenville, South Carolina’s housing authority. Two of her co-conspirators went with her.
The Greenville Housing Authority told Gray that all three have been placed on paid leave.
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