Article Originally Published Here.
An ex-NYPD sergeant and a trio of homeless services providers allegedly pocketed more than $1 million in kickbacks linked to city-run migrant shelters, federal prosecutors revealed Tuesday.
All four were nabbed as part of a corruption probe in the Eastern District of New York that was also linked to raids on City Councilwoman Farah Louis, her politically connected sister, and the husband of the Brooklyn Democratic Party, sources said.
Former cop Eduardo St. Fort, 47; nonprofit bigs Jean Ronald Tirelus and Roberto Samedy, both 50; and vendor Miguel Jorge, 52, were indicted on bribery and conspiracy charges.
“As alleged, the defendants used their leadership positions to loot public funds from an organization devoted to serving vulnerable New Yorkers,” said US Attorney Joseph Nocella in a statement.
The case burst into public view Monday evening when the Associated Press reported that search warrants had been served on Louis and her sister, Debbie Louis, an aide to Gov. Kathy Hochul, in a probe into migrant shelter contracts.
Explore More
The Louis sisters – as well as Edu Hermelyn, the husband of state Assembly Member and chair of the Brooklyn Democratic Party, Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn – are said to be under scrutiny for potentially taking kickbacks on behalf of BHRAGS Home Care Inc., a Brooklyn-based home service provider turned migrant shelter provider. They have not been charged.
Former Mayor Eric Adams’ administration awarded scores of such contracts, often on a no-bid basis, as the city grappled with a flood of asylum seekers starting in 2022.
BHARG has secured more than a dozen contracts for homeless services since 2022, totaling more than $200 million, city records show.
Tirelus and Samedy, who respectively served as BHARGS’ president and executive director, are accused of stealing $1.3 million from the company, including by convincing the board of directors to send $800,000 to a shell company, according to court documents.
St. Fort, who retired from the NYPD in 2023, is accused of bribing the brass at BHRAGS in exchange for subcontracts for security services, according to the docs.
His company, Fort NYC Security, had six city contracts as a security subvendor for BHRAGS and the Bronx Family Network Inc., receiving just over $7 million in public funds, records show.
Five of St. Fort’s contracts, including all of his BHRAGS deals, were awarded no-bid. Four of them were awarded before he even had a security guard license, records show.
Three were signed off by the city’s comptroller’s office on Feb. 27, 2023, with another issued by City Hall on June 6, 2023, according to the records. Those totaled $2.1 million.
Feds arrested St. Fort in Boston, Massachusetts, and he was released on a $500,000 bond after an appearance in federal court.
His case will proceed in Brooklyn federal court, where Tirelus, Samedy, and Jorge all pleaded not guilty to the charges Tuesday afternoon.
Tirelus and Samedy were each released on $500,000 bonds secured by their homes. Jorge walked free on a $150,000 bond.
“The allegations turn a lifetime of good works on their head, and he looks forward to clearing his name at trial,” said Tirelus’s lawyer, Todd Spodek.
Spodek added that Tirelus had been aware of the probe for some time and promptly surrendered himself after learning that he’d been indicted.
Start your day with all you need to know
Morning Report delivers the latest news, videos, photos, and more.
Samedy’s lawyer, Seth Zuckerman, said: “Roberto looks forward to clearing his name and getting back to the important work BHRAGS is doing in the community.”
The probe is being handled by the EDNY’s public integrity bureau, a team of prosecutors that pursues political corruption cases.
The Louis sisters and Hermelyn didn’t return requests for comment.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani said during an unrelated news conference that City Hall officials will look into BHARGS’ contracts.
“We’ll definitely be looking into these because any allegation, especially if it’s being substantiated, of improper action and behavior is one that has to be followed up on,” he said.
