Did Company Mistreat Its Workers?

CNN recently did a report on the mistreatment of immigrant workers and two Mississippi companies are faced with lawsuits concerning the immigrants.

Two Mississippi companies deny allegations they lured foreign workers to the United States with false promises of good jobs then housed them in storage buildings.

Twelve Brazilians are suing Moss Point-based Knights Marine and Industrial and a subsidiary, Five Star Contractors LLC, alleging racketeering, breach of contract and fraud.

The workers, who came to Mississippi on temporary work visas, allege they spent thousands of dollars in travel expenses, but the high-paying jobs they were promised didn’t materialize.

Brian Knight, president of Knights Marine, denied the allegations in a statement to The Associated Press.

He calls the allegations false and the lawsuit frivolous.

What is A “Primary Residence”?

This story from the Sun-Herald.

If Mayor Brent Warr and his wife, Laura, are tried on Katrina-fraud charges, a verdict could be based on a “totality” of records indicating whether their primary residence was the one they claimed on Beach Drive to qualify for federal hurricane recovery funds, according to records from a previous case.

Court testimony in a previous case indicates neither MDA nor FEMA regulations define what constitutes a “primary residence.”

The Homeowners Assistance grant paperwork asked applicants: “Was damaged residence your primary residence on Aug. 29, 2005?” To qualify for a grant, the application guidebook says, you must have “owned and occupied your home on Aug. 29, 2005,” and it must have been your “primary residence.”

The Warrs bought the beach property from the federal government around January 2004. They were living in a home owned by Brent Warr’s grandmother while the beach home was renovated. Brent Warr has said the family was substantially moved into the beach home when Katrina struck.

Bordelon said homestead exemption on a property is one indication the home is owner-occupied. But if the Warrs moved into the beach home in 2005, the law says they would need to wait until January 2006 to apply for homestead. The Harrison County Tax Assessor’s Office said the Warrs have never had homestead exemption on the beach house, although they live there now.

In addition to homestead exemption, Bordelon testified in the previous case: “We look for where somebody gets their bills, where they spend their time, where their belongings are, where do their bills go to, are they registered to vote, their driver’s license, things of that nature, things that can only be attributed to one location, generally.

“But when there is evidence of a situation where someone is fortunate enough to have more than one home, for example, the reliability of some of these factors diminishes. For example, if someone has more than one residence, they can spend time in multiple locations. So you look at where did they maintain their homestead, and those other factors increase in importance.”

Here is an idea:  primary residence?  the place where you physically live.  See that was not so hard.  If he gets to keep the cash, then everyone who filled out the paperwork should a second chance at scamming the government too.

This is just all so pathetic.

On a side note…why are not the people more outraged?  I mean a governor was impeached because of allegations….I guess the South is just more tolerant to the crimes of our elected representatives…..we have many many years of crooks in office…..that is all I can think of…….for some reason voters seldom think of them as betraying the public trust…..is it stupidity or just ignorance that allows this sort of thing to continue?

More Trouble For Warr

Mayor Brent Warr and his wife, Laura, were originally indicted in November on 11 counts of Katrina fraud, but court records show those charges were sealed while the investigation continued.

The second indictment against the Warrs, unsealed last week in U.S. District Court, contained 16 charges against each of them. It supersedes the original indictment.

One conspiracy charge and four insurance fraud charges were added to the second indictment, issued Jan. 22. The second indictment remained under seal until the Warrs appeared in court Wednesday, entering not guilty pleas.

The 11 original charges involve $150,000 in homeowner assistance funds and $9,558 in FEMA funds the Warrs received for Katrina damage to their beachfront home. Those charges have been incorporated into the second indictment.

Prosecutors contend the Warrs lied to secure the federal funds, claiming the home as their primary residence when they actually lived in a house that belonged to Brent Warr’s grandmother while the beach home was being renovated.

Illinois impeached a gover5nor over allegations, what will Gulfport do?

Gulfport Mayor Fights Indictment

A Hurricane Katrina-recovery ambassador to President George W. Bush and the nation, Mayor Brent Warr says his work and the city’s will continue as prosecutors prepare a federal case against him and his wife, Laura, on 16 charges of Katrina fraud.

The Warrs cried quietly Wednesday in the corridor of the U.S. District courthouse just blocks from City Hall after they were each indicted on 16 charges: one count of conspiracy, one count of fraud, two counts of theft of public funds, four counts of making false statements, three counts of wire fraud and five counts of mail fraud.

The indictment says the Warrs reconstructed their beachfront mansion with $222,798 in ill-gotten gains from FEMA, HUD and Lexington Insurance Co. from September 2005 to March 2007. The Warrs received the maximum $150,000 HUD homeowners grant through the Mississippi Development Authority, $9,558 in FEMA funds and $88,440.10 from Lexington Insurance Co., the indictment says.

Gulfport’s first couple potentially faces maximum penalties of 210 years each in prison and fines of up to $4 million each. The government also is seeking forfeiture of their Katrina recovery and insurance funds, or assets of equal value.

Their trial is tentatively scheduled for April 6. Their attorney, Joe Sam Owen of Gulfport, told the judge that the Warrs would have separate attorneys by Monday. There is a potential conflict of interest when a couple is represented by the same attorney.

Charges Against The Warrs

In case one is interested in the charges filed against Mr & Mrs Warr here they be:

Charges against Brent and Laura Warr:

Count 1: Conspiracy

Count 2: Fraud

Counts 3-6: False statements

Maximum penalty on each count, counts 1-6: five years in prison, $250,000 fine.

Counts 7-8: Theft of federal funds

Maximum penalty on each count, counts 7 and 8: 10 years in prison, $250,000 fine.

Counts 9-11: Wire fraud

Count 12-16: Mail fraud

Maximum penalty on each count, counts 9-16: 20 years in prison and $250,000 fine.

City Council members expect the work of the city to move forward despite Mayor Brent Warr’s personal problems.Most of the council were in Jackson on Wednesday attending the Mississippi Municipal League conference; however, two returned to Gulfport on Wednesday afternoon after they heard that Warr and his wife, Laura, were indicted in federal court on 16 counts of Hurricane Katrina fraud.

Most of the council said they were surprised at the number of counts.

FLASH! WARR INDICTED!

JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — The mayor of a Mississippi city hit hard by Hurricane Katrina has been indicted after federal officials say he filed a false claim for disaster assistance.

Gulfport Mayor Brent Warr says the charges have nothing to do with his job and he will continue to run the city, which was heavily damaged by Katrina’s wind and storm surge in 2005.

The indictment alleges Warr and his wife, Laura, sought a grant for a hurricane-damaged beachfront house they did not live in. Gulfport is on the coast about 80 miles east of New Orleans.

The Warrs pleaded not guilty Wednesday.

Charges include conspiring to defraud the federal government and filing a false claim for disaster assistance.

Brent Warr is the highest-ranking municipal official indicted for Katrina fraud to date.

Katrina Fraud Nails Police Chief

Lumberton Police Chief Maurice Hammond has been indicted on eight charges involving false claims he allegedly made to FEMA and the Small Business Administration for Katrina disaster assistance money, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced today.

The indictment alleges that Hammond, who is from Poplarville, filed a false claim for disaster assistance, made false statements to FEMA, stole government funds, and committed wire fraud. The indictment also alleges Hammond made a false statement to the SBA.

If convicted of each count, Hammond faces up to 105 years in prison and up to $2 million in fines. Hammond has been released on bond and ordered to appear Dec. 1 for arraignment in U.S. District Court.

MS: Mayor Gets Investigated

A federal investigation into whether Mayor Brent Warr broke the law when he received a grant to rebuild his home continues after more than a year.

Warr received a grant designed to help homeowners rebuild through the Mississippi Development Authority after Hurricane Katrina.

The feds want to know whether Warr’s damaged beachfront home was his primary residence.

To qualify for a homeowner grant of up to $150,000, an applicant had to prove they owned and lived in their home prior to Aug. 29, 2005. In addition, the applicant must prove the home was their primary residence through land deeds or personal bill statements.

MS: BAM! Nail Another One

A South Mississippi man has been indicted on charges of Katrina fraud involving about $200,000 in grants in Hancock County.

State Auditor Stacey Pickering announced the indictment of Clinton Tapper today.

Tapper, 58, appeared in U.S. District Court and was released on $25,000 bond. His trial date is set for Dec. 1.

“The State Auditor’s Office continues to investigate cases of Katrina fraud across South Mississippi and currently has over 250 active cases,” Pickering said. “Our office has been very successful in identifying fraud cases and we continue to work with federal and state courts to bring these cases to a conclusion.”

MS: One Bad Apple

From the South MS Sun-Herald:

Can one bad apple spoil an entire barrel?

The question is being pondered these days by housing activists and volunteer organizations here after allegations of fraud were filed against a group whose principals collected millions to help rebuild hurricane-stricken homes, then allegedly went on extended personal spending sprees and left recovery jobs undone.

Long-range ramifications from the sad story of Camp Coastal Outpost remain unclear at this point, but some in the non-profit sector don’t expect good things.

And that’s a distinct possibility. Camp Coastal Outpost’s principals, Mike Sweeney and Sandy Molenhouse, enjoyed a lot of flattery before their operation was slapped with allegations of fraud and a cease-and-desist order from the Mississippi Secretary of State on Aug. 29. Their finer moments included a 2007 appearance on network television news and a laudatory proclamation from the state Legislature.

Camp Coastal Outpost received $5.6 million in donations, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. She said with all those millions, Camp Coastal Outpost built only about 112 homes.

Of that number, some were considered substandard, she said, adding, “We think there are 20 or 25 that have some major work left to be done.”

The debacle occurred at a crucial time for nonprofits. Three years have passed since Katrina, attention has shifted to other disasters and purse strings are tightening for Coast volunteer-recovery efforts.