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Press Release

Baton Rouge Man Pleads Guilty to Theft of Disaster Assistance Funds

For Immediate Release
U.S. Attorney's Office, Middle District of Louisiana

BATON ROUGE, LA – Acting United States Attorney Corey Amundson, who also serves as the Acting Executive Director of the National Center for Disaster Fraud, announced today that COURTNEY D. HICKMAN, age 42, of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, pled guilty to theft of $26,362 in Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) funds in relation to the 2016 Baton Rouge flooding.

 

Following the 2016 flooding that affected 12 parishes in south Louisiana, FEMA funds were available to people who had emergency needs for food, shelter, and clothing because of the flood. In order to qualify for assistance based on home ownership, an individual must have, among other things, resided in the home at the time of the storm.

 

HICKMAN entered a plea of guilty to theft of government funds. According to documents submitted to the Court, in August 2016, HICKMAN filed a fraudulent claim with FEMA seeking disaster assistance funds for a home in Baton Rouge that he claimed was his primary residence at the time of the storm. At the time of the storm, however, HICKMAN was residing elsewhere and was renting his home to a tenant for 4 months prior to and throughout the period of the August 2016 flooding.

 

Acting U.S. Attorney Amundson stated, “The federal government consistently comes to the aid of individuals affected by disaster, and with the intent to return these individuals to the lives they lived before being victimized by disasters. The federal government’s efforts, however, are at times hindered by the actions of fraudsters who seek to steal disaster assistance funds that are intended for true victims. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana, together with the National Center for Disaster Fraud and our federal, state, and local law enforcement partners, will continue to identify and prosecute those individuals who seek to steal assistance funds and affect the ability of the federal government to assist those truly in need.”

 

Special Agent-in-Charge David Green, Houston Field Office, Department of Homeland Security Office of Inspector General stated, “The DHS OIG, with the help of the U.S. Attorney’s Office, will continue to hold these individuals accountable. Stealing from the U.S. taxpayer by filing fraudulent FEMA claims for disaster assistance will never be tolerated by our agency.”

Members of the public who suspect fraud involving disaster relief efforts, or believe they have been the victim of fraud from a person or organization soliciting relief funds on behalf of disaster victims, should contact the National Disaster Fraud Hotline toll free at (866) 720-5721. The telephone line is staffed by a live operator 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. You can also fax information to the Center at (225) 334-4707, or email it to disaster@leo.gov. Learn more about the Department of Justice’s National Center for Disaster Fraud at http://www.justice.gov/disaster-fraud.

 This matter is being handled by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Louisiana and the Department of Homeland Security, Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Paul L. Pugliese.

Updated October 12, 2017

Topic
Disaster Fraud