United States Attorney Richard B. Roper
Northern District of Texas

FIVE CURRENT AND FORMER FEDERAL GOVERNMENT EMPLOYEES INDICTED
IN “OPERATION FED RENT”

Defendants Allegedly Fraudulently Obtained Nearly $150,000 in HUD Section 8 Payments

DALLAS — Five employees of various federal agencies in the Dallas area were indicted this week for allegedly defrauding the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) of approximately $147,344 in HUD Section 8 payments, announced U.S. Attorney Richard B. Roper of the Northern District of Texas. A federal grand jury in Dallas returned the five-count indictment that charges each defendant with one count of obtaining HUD program funds by fraud. All defendants are expected to surrender to federal officials next week.

The indictment is the result of an HUD initiative dubbed “Operation FedRent,” begun in March 2006, that targets federal government employees who defraud housing assistance programs. This anti-fraud effort is designed to expose and prosecute federal government employees who misrepresent their incomes to obtain rental subsidies, effectively denying housing assistance to eligible families.

The five defendants named in the indictment are:

∙ Tanya Lashawn Blaylock, 34, of Lewisville, Texas
a former employee of Department of Homeland Security, Citizenship and Immigration Services
∙ Cheryl Demetra Esters, 45 of Dallas
an employee of the Internal Revenue Service
∙ Bonita Yvonne Fisher, 45, of Hutchins, Texas
an employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs
∙ Michelle Salisbury Parker, of Dallas
a former employee of the Internal Revenue Service
∙ Mary Beth Sabala, of Plano, Texas
an employee of the U.S. Department of Agriculture

HUD’s Section 8 Rental Voucher Program authorizes financial assistance to low income individuals to subsidize the rent of low income families to help them afford decent housing in the

1private market. Through these Section 8 payments, HUD made up the difference between what a low income household could afford and the fair market rent for an adequate housing unit. The Dallas Housing Authority (DHA) received HUD funds through the Section 8 low income housing program, and accepted, on behalf of HUD, applications for Section 8 rental assistance. DHA then screened those applications and then used HUD Section 8 funds to provide rental assistance to individuals who were financially eligible under HUD and DHA guidelines.

According to the indictment, the five defendants named in this indictment fraudulently obtained a total of approximately $147,344 in HUD Section 8 payments when each defendant concealed her income as a federal employee when she applied for HUD Section 8 rental assistance.

An indictment is an accusation by a federal grand jury and a defendant is entitled to the presumption of innocence unless proven guilty. However, if convicted, each defendant faces a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The investigation was conducted by HUD-Office of Inspector General, U.S. Department of Agriculture - Office of Inspector General, Department of Veterans Affairs and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney David Jarvis.

###