‘The Huge Cash Present’ panel discusses President Donald Trump’s efforts to clamp down on homeless encampments throughout the USA.
As a part of a particular federal job power investigating the place a staggering $24 billion designated for homelessness in California has ended up, the Division of Justice revealed preliminary findings on Thursday, asserting new legal instances in opposition to two LA space actual property builders who the federal authorities says misused roughly $50 million in a mixture of federal, state and native {dollars} earmarked for homelessness.
“This isn’t a victimless crime,” mentioned Akil Davis, FBI Los Angeles assistant director in cost. “Because the hundreds of thousands of {dollars} misplaced might have been used for housing the homeless or different native priorities funded by California taxpayers.”
Cody Holmes, 31, of Beverly Hills was arrested and charged with federal felony fraud Thursday morning for allegedly receiving $25.9 million in grant cash supposed for a homeless housing undertaking that was by no means constructed.
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An individual walks amid giant trash piles and sprawling homeless encampment as enterprise house owners proceed to complain concerning the giant and rising trash piles close to E. 14th Road in downtown Los Angeles on Sept. 25, 2025. (Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Instances through Getty Pictures)
Based on courtroom paperwork, the California Division of Housing and Neighborhood Growth paid almost $26 million to Shangri-LA Industries LLC in October 2022 for use for the acquisition, building and operation of homeless housing in Thousand Oaks, California.
The federal government alleges that Holmes, because the then-CFO of Shangri-LA, submitted faux financial institution paperwork and steadiness sheets to get authorized for the grant cash. Prosecutors allege Holmes lived a lavish life-style and used a few of the homeless funding to pay $2 million in the direction of American Specific playing cards that included purchases at “well-known luxurious retailers.”
“Should you steal cash or enable it to be stolen, we’ll discover you, and we’ll prosecute you,” mentioned Invoice Essayli, performing U.S. legal professional for California’s Central District.
Fox Information has reached out to Shangri-LA for remark.
In a separate case, federal investigators arrested 44-year-old Steven Taylor of Los Angeles, and charged him with seven counts of financial institution fraud, one rely of aggravated id theft and one rely of cash laundering.
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The indictment alleges that Taylor supplied false financial institution statements and information to acquire properties throughout LA. Most not too long ago, prosecutors say he was concerned in a 2023 scheme wherein he supplied false paperwork to buy a property in LA’s Cheviot Hills neighborhood for $11 million. He then rapidly resold the property for $27 million.
Tents for the homeless are seen on Aug. 6, 2023 on a Skid Row sidewalk in Los Angeles, California. (FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP through Getty Pictures)
On the time of buy, the constructing was getting used as a senior dwelling facility. Federal prosecutors allege Taylor “misrepresented” that he supposed to renovate and function the Cheviot Hills property himself however was already “in contract to promote the Shelby property.”
The DOJ says the purchaser of the property is a well known nonprofit in LA known as “Weingart,” which used federal and native funds to make the acquisition. Essayli says Weingart is a part of the investigation.
The longtime CEO of Weingart is former California Democratic State Sen. Kevin Murray. Murray was in a roundabout way named or charged. Fox has reached out to Weingart and Murray for remark.
After the fees had been introduced, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass launched an announcement saying, partly, “My administration has zero tolerance for corruption – interval. We’re working with the U.S. Lawyer’s workplace to make sure that anybody who engages in fraud in opposition to town will face the complete power of the regulation and my administration’s unwavering dedication to accountability.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass. (Robert Gauthier/Los Angeles Instances through Getty Pictures)
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In April of this 12 months, Essayli introduced the launch of the Homeless Fraud and Corruption Job Pressure – geared toward investigating how the state spent $24 billion between fiscal years 2018 and 2023.
“California state officers failed to supply significant oversight over the people who acquired most of those funds, they usually had little to no solutions to the general public’s demand for accountability. Effectively, that accountability begins immediately,” Essayli mentioned.