THE scandal-ridden Catholic Archdiocese of New Orleans, led by Archbishop Gregory Aymond, above, was compelled to declare bankruptcy in May 2020 in the wake of claims made by victims of clerical abuse.
It’s now been revealed by the US Department of Justice that the diocese, apart from harbouring a host of abusive priests, made false claims regarding damage allegedly done to its properties by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in 2005. It has agreed to pay back a meagre $1-m of the $184-m it received from The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) between the times of the hurricanes and 2018.
In a press release issued yesterday (Monday), the DOJ said:
The settlement resolves allegations that, from 2007 through 2013, the Archdiocese of New Orleans knowingly signed certifications for FEMA funding that contained false or fraudulent damage descriptions and repair estimates that were prepared by AECOM, an architecture and engineering firm based in Los Angeles.
Among other things, the alleged false descriptions included purported damage to a nonexistent central air conditioning unit and misstated a facility’s square footage.
Said Acting Assistant Attorney General Brian M Boynton of the Justice Department’s Civil Division:
FEMA offers critical financial support when natural disasters strike. The Department of Justice is committed to ensuring that these taxpayer funds are properly spent to help disaster victims rebuild their communities.
In May of this year, it was reported here...
A Coral Springs woman was indicted in federal court for her alleged role in a $58.3 million Medicare fraud scheme built around medically unnecessary orthotic braces, federal prosecutors announced ...