California authorities have arrested Alexander Soofer, a nonprofit executive accused of diverting tens of millions of taxpayer dollars intended to house and feed the homeless to bankroll a lavish personal lifestyle, according to federal prosecutors.
Soofer is the executive director of the charity Abundant Blessings.
He was taken into custody in a pre-dawn raid at his multimillion-dollar Los Angeles mansion on Friday.
Federal authorities later towed his Range Rover from the property as part of the investigation.
First Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California Bill Essayli announced Friday that Soofer has been charged with wire fraud.
The felony charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison.
According to prosecutors, Soofer allegedly siphoned off government taxpayer funds meant for homeless services.
He used the stolen money to make improvements to his luxury home and support an extravagant lifestyle.
The arrest comes amid growing scrutiny of California’s homelessness spending.
Funding to supposedly tackle homelessness has ballooned in recent years, with little measurable improvement.
Independent journalist Nick Shirley, who previously exposed massive fraud in Minnesota, told Congress that California’s situation may be even worse.
In response to a question from Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-CA), Shirley testified:
“Fraud in California might be even worse than the fraud in Minnesota.”
Shirley pointed to an estimated $24 billion in homelessness funds that cannot be fully accounted for.
He also highlighted multiple projects that he believes show clear signs of systemic abuse.
Essayli has been blunt in his assessment of the state’s leadership.
Earlier this month, he referred to Gov. Gavin Newsom as the “king of fraud.”
“California has spent $24 billion in the last five years on homelessness, and no one can account for where that money has really gone,” Essayli said during an appearance on “Fox & Friends.”
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In April, Essayli launched a federal task force focused on corruption and fraud within California’s homelessness programs.
That effort has already resulted in charges against two other individuals accused of exploiting real estate projects tied to homeless services for personal gain.
Those cases, Essayli warned, represent only “the tip of the iceberg” as investigators continue to dig into how billions in taxpayer dollars were spent, and allegedly abused, under California’s homelessness system.
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