Trending claims

Councilmember Nithya Raman until recently chaired the committee overseeing Los Angeles's homelessness spending.

In July, LAHSA reported a 1.2 percent rise in homelessness across Los Angeles County.

Mayor Karen Bass appointed herself to the LAHSA governing commission in 2023.

LAist previously reported that hundreds of apartments rented by LAHSA for the homeless were empty.

In August, LAist reported that LAHSA continued to sign contracts with Alexander Soofer's charities after internal auditors flagged them as 'high-risk'.

The Trump administration previously suspended federal funding to LAHSA, citing poor financial management and conflicts of interest.

The DOJ stated that Alexander Soofer is expected to plead guilty to felony fraud charges in the coming weeks.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli stated that the fraud exposes a profound failure by California and Los Angeles County to safeguard public funds.

Donye Mitchell is accused of misrepresenting his experience to get public grant funding, which he then spent on personal expenses including his own bail.

Michael Young and Lakiya Malone have both been charged with wire fraud.

Alexander Soofer was arrested in January on fraud charges and has admitted to misappropriating $10 million in public funds.

Federal prosecutors allege Michael Young misappropriated $12 million in public funds for personal expenses, including vacations and a nightclub.

A third defendant, Donye Mitchell, remains at large.

Lakiya Malone is accused of accepting $180,000 in bribes and kickbacks from Alexander Soofer to place homeless clients, including fictitious ones, in his charity's programs.

The DOJ says the nonprofit Home At Last received $118 million in public funds via contracts with the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority (LAHSA).

Michael Young is the founder of the nonprofit Home At Last.

The DOJ announced on Wednesday it charged three individuals with defrauding federal funds for Los Angeles homelessness programs.

Defendants Michael Young and Lakiya Malone were arrested by federal agents at their homes on Wednesday morning.

ACLU attorney Scarlet Kim stated that Task Force agents should neither stake out clients' homes for recording them nor abuse the Halo Law to interfere with their First Amendment right to record.

Over the past two years, videos have shown federal immigration agents arresting or threatening people for filming them in locations from Oregon to the Florida Keys.