Top military housing executives responsible for massive fraud scheme walk away unscathed
Several high-level executives of a private military housing company that was fined $65 million in late December after pleading guilty to “pervasive fraud” were implicated in a scheme to collect unearned bonuses for housing maintenance that was never done, court documents show.
The company, Balfour Beatty Communities LLC, falsified its performance data and destroyed resident comment cards so it could pocket performance incentive fees from the Army, Air Force and Navy, according to the Department of Justice. Balfour Beatty Communities operates military housing communities at 21 Air Force, 18 Navy, and 16 Army bases across the country.
Instead of performing maintenance on the homes of family members, Balfour Beatty employees allowed toxic mold, insect infestations, water leaks, burst pipes and other problems to spread through those homes, leading to health problems like migraines, asthma, and even burns from the ruptured hot water pipes.
Earlier this year, two relatively low-ranking Balfour Beatty employees, former community manager Stacy Cabrera and former regional manager Rick Cunefare, pleaded guilty to charges related to those fraudulent incentive fee submissions. But top-level executives of the company who were aware of or complicit in the fraud scheme have avoided public scrutiny for their organization’s failings and the effects on military families.
While a Statement of Facts document — signed and agreed upon by both parties — filed with the court does not name “individuals at the executive level, including Balfour Beatty Communities’ former chief operating officer,” it says they “contributed to pressure” to obtain performance incentive fees, were “aware of warning signs” of related misconduct, and “failed to take immediate action to investigate the allegations and correct any misconduct.”
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