Earlier today, a federal court in Brooklyn unsealed an indictment charging Julio Medina, Christopher Dantzler, and Weihong Hu with multiple offenses including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, honest-services wire fraud, money laundering conspiracy, and commercial bribery. The three individuals were arrested this morning in different locations across New York and are scheduled to be arraigned before United States Magistrate Judge James R. Cho.
The announcement of the arrests and charges was made by John J. Durham, United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York; Jocelyn E. Strauber, Commissioner of the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI); and James E. Dennehy, Assistant Director in Charge at the Federal Bureau of Investigation's New York Field Office.
United States Attorney Durham stated: “The defendants’ brazen and illegal kickback scheme stole money from the City of New York that was intended to provide emergency housing and support services during the pandemic.” He added that the defendants exploited a nonprofit organization for personal gain during a time when New York City was attempting to curb COVID-19 spread.
DOI Commissioner Strauber remarked: “As charged, these defendants...engaged in and concealed a bribery and kickback scheme,” expressing gratitude to various offices for their collaboration in protecting public resources.
FBI Assistant Director Dennehy commented on the alleged misuse of funds: “These three defendants allegedly pocketed millions of dollars from public funds allocated for emergency housing during the pandemic.”
According to the indictment, Medina founded a nonprofit organization providing reentry services for formerly incarcerated individuals. The organization received approximately $122 million in public funds between June 2020 and December 2023 from the New York City Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice (MOCJ) to operate an Emergency Housing Program aimed at combating COVID-19 spread in jails.
Dantzler's company allegedly received tens of millions in public funds under false pretenses as it purportedly provided security services without being licensed or actually offering such services. Hu operated hotels functioning as reentry facilities under the program and was involved with a catering company serving these hotels.
Medina is accused of accepting bribes from Dantzler and Hu in exchange for directing business towards their enterprises under the Emergency Housing Program. These bribes included luxury items like a townhouse valued at $1.3 million, a vehicle worth $107,000 financed by Hu’s business, and property renovations paid by Dantzler.
In total, it is alleged that Dantzler and Hu provided Medina with over $2.5 million through various means while receiving substantial sums from public funds—Dantzler's company received about $21 million while Hu’s businesses collectively obtained around $29 million.
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorneys Meredith A. Arfa, Eric Silverberg, and Sean M. Sherman from the Public Integrity Section with support from Paralegal Specialists Kavya Kannan and Rebecca Roth.
The defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty as charges remain allegations at this stage.