4 charged in corruption investigation linked to NYC homeless shelter operator

NEW YORK — Federal prosecutors probing public corruption in New York have charged the leaders of a homeless shelter nonprofit with stealing $1.3 million from the taxpayer-backed organization and steering contracts worth millions more to favored vendors in exchange for bribes and kickbacks, according to an indictment unsealed Tuesday.

The charges come as investigators also probe whether City Council Member Farah Louis and her sister Debbie Louis, an aide to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, accepted bribes related to the appropriation of city funds to the nonprofit, according to a search warrant viewed by The Associated Press.

Four people were arrested in the probe Tuesday. The sisters were not among those taken into custody.

The indictment describes multiple layers of corruption within BHRAGS Home Care Corp., a nonprofit focused on home health care, which has in recent years expanded its mission to include homeless shelters. They manage multiple emergency shelters opened in response to an influx of asylum seekers under the city's former mayor, Eric Adams.

Prosecutors said the nonprofit's executive director, Roberto Samedy, 50, and its former board chairman, Jean Ronald Tirelus, 50, embezzled from the organization — at one point pocketing $800,000 earmarked for “economic growth and affordable housing” in distressed Brooklyn neighborhoods.

The pair also received more than $200,000 in kickbacks in exchange for steering contracts worth millions of dollars to businesses controlled by Edouardo St. Fort and Miguel Jorge, the indictment said.

Tirelus, Samedy and Jorge all pleaded not guilty through their attorneys in court on Tuesday.

St. Fort, a former New York City police sergeant, was arrested in Massachusetts on Tuesday and did not appear in the courtroom. Inquiries to his attorney were not returned.

The indictment did not outline any wrongdoing by others. All four of the men arrested Tuesday were mentioned in a search warrant, signed March 19, seeking communications between BHRAGS, the Louis sisters and Edu Hermelyn,

Edu Hermelyn is the husband of state Assembly member Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn, who chairs the Brooklyn Democratic Party.

Messages left for Farah Louis, Debbie Louis and Edu Hermelyn were not returned.

A spokesperson for BHRAGS issued a statement saying the nonprofit has served New Yorkers for more than 50 years “with integrity and the highest ethical standards, and we take the allegations against Mr. Samedy seriously.”

It said Samedy is on administrative leave, with his duties handed off to the company’s chief operating officer, and that the company is cooperating with law enforcement.

Tirelus’ lawyer, Todd Spodek, said he “categorically disputes the charges and looks forward to clearing his name at trial.”

Tirelus and Samedy were charged with wire fraud, embezzlement, and bribery-related offenses and face up to 20 years in prison if convicted. St. Fort and Jorge were charged with federal program bribery and related charges, and face up to 10 years each.

St. Fort, who retired as a New York City police sergeant in 2023, runs Fort NYC Security, records show. Since 2023, the city has agreed to pay more than $7 million to Fort NYC Security to provide security services at homeless shelters, often as a subcontractor for BHRAGS.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said the city would “definitely be looking into” existing contracts that the city has with BHRAGS.

The existence of a search warrant naming Farah and Debbie Louis doesn’t necessarily indicate that prosecutors plan to bring criminal charges against them, only that investigators persuaded a magistrate judge to allow them to dig deeper and seize evidence.

Nevertheless, the governor's office said Debbie Louis has been placed on leave, and a spokesperson for the City Council said the legislative body “takes any potential misconduct extremely seriously.”

“New Yorkers deserve confidence in their government,” the spokesperson said. “It is essential that the federal investigation proceed fairly and expeditiously to bring this matter to a resolution.”