Michael Young, a founder of the Culver City, California, homelessness nonprofit Home At Last, was arrested September 16 on a federal wire fraud charge alleging he misappropriated more than $7.5 million in taxpayer money meant for homeless housing. The Justice Department says Young ran the money through sham vendors he secretly controlled and spent millions on a nightclub, commercial real estate, vacations and vintage cars. The complaint is an allegation, and Young is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.
The case against Home At Last’s founder
According to the Justice Department’s September 16 announcement, Young, 46, of Baldwin Hills, is charged in a federal criminal complaint with wire fraud, a felony that carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in federal prison. Prosecutors allege a years-long scheme to defraud taxpayers and public agencies that fund homeless housing, including programs run by the Los Angeles Homeless Services Authority, known as LAHSA, the lead agency coordinating housing and social services for homeless people in Los Angeles County.
Through contracts with LAHSA and other public bodies, Young received more than $118 million from LAHSA, the City of Los Angeles, the County of Los Angeles and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, DOJ says. LAHSA alone paid Home At Last more than $75 million for homeless-housing services. Prosecutors allege Young used a sham-vendor fraud to take more than $7.5 million of those funds. LAHSA canceled its contracts with Home At Last in June 2026.
When a news-making fraud case prompts an unexpected call. Large public-money cases can be followed by callers who claim to be collecting for victims or recovering funds. The first-hour recovery plan and fraud evidence and report log in The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit help a household write down exactly what such a caller asked for and act quickly if money has already changed hands.
How the sham vendors allegedly worked
The complaint alleges Young repeatedly told funders that money would go to homeless housing or to vendors serving that housing. Instead, prosecutors say, he created sham vendors to hide self-dealing, submitting fake bids, forged signatures and fraudulent invoices so the companies looked like independent businesses charging fair market prices. DOJ says the vendors had no employees, no locations and no legitimate operations, and existed only to send public money back to Young, who allegedly controlled their bank accounts.
DOJ says the diverted money paid for Young’s personal enrichment, including a lounge, luxury vacations, vintage car restorations and commercial properties unrelated to homeless housing. He allegedly spent more than $1 million to open and run Six Seven Five Lounge, a high-end restaurant and nightclub in Inglewood, and financed construction of an adjacent bingo hall.
Assistant Attorney General Colin M. McDonald of the National Fraud Enforcement Division said Young “received more than $100 million in taxpayer funds and misappropriated more than $12 million” in total, diverting money into shell companies, real estate, a nightclub and a bingo hall. The $7.5 million figure is the portion prosecutors tie specifically to the sham-vendor scheme. FBI Director Kash Patel said the defendants in the day’s cases are accused of diverting more than $12 million in taxpayer funds.
Three other defendants in the same crackdown
The announcement came from the Homelessness Fraud and Corruption Task Force, which covers the seven counties of the Central District of California: Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara and Ventura. Two of three newly charged defendants were arrested that day and were expected to make initial appearances that afternoon in federal court in downtown Los Angeles.
Donye Mitchell, 55, of Orange, the chief executive of the Los Angeles nonprofit The Big Blue Umbrella, is charged with wire fraud and is considered a fugitive. Prosecutors allege he falsely claimed his group was a major homeless-housing provider to win more than $1.2 million in grants from the county-funded Amity Foundation, then spent money on inflated salary payments, his own bail bond costs, credit card debt and PlayStation charges. Amity terminated the contract in May 2025 after disbursing about $315,000.
Lakiya Malone, 48, of South Los Angeles, an employee of the nonprofit Special Service for Groups, faces a 21-count indictment alleging she took more than $180,000 in bribes and kickbacks for priority housing referrals, including “ghost” participants who never lived at the sites. The alleged payer, Alexander Soofer, executive director of Abundant Blessings, has agreed to plead guilty to wire fraud and money laundering. In his plea agreement, Soofer admitted obtaining $23 million in public money meant to combat homelessness, at least some of it through fraud, and pocketing at least $2 million.
Why it matters for taxpayers and donors
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli of the Central District of California said the alleged schemes expose “a profound failure” by the state and Los Angeles County to safeguard public funds. The cases are being investigated by the FBI, IRS Criminal Investigation and HUD’s Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Kerry L. Quinn, Sarah E. Spielberger and James C. Hughes of the Major Frauds Section are prosecuting Young, along with Tara Vavere of the office’s Asset Forfeiture and Recovery Section. Acting Inspector General Brian D. Harrison of HUD’s Office of Inspector General called theft from homelessness programs “an attack on the most vulnerable communities provided for by HUD programs.”
The prosecution does not create a claims or refund process for the public. For older Americans who give to local charities, the case is a reminder to look beyond a nonprofit’s mission statement. The IRS Tax Exempt Organization Search shows whether a group is recognized as tax-exempt and provides access to its filed annual returns, which list revenue, top salaries and major expenses. Callers who cite this case while asking for donations, fees or bank details should be treated as suspect; DOJ’s announcement gives no instruction for the public to send money or information to anyone.
Screening the calls that follow a public fraud case
Well-known cases give impostors real names and dollar figures to borrow, which can make a request for a “victim fund” payment or a bank detail sound legitimate.
The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit includes the family code word for verifying a caller, the free credit-freeze steps, a fraud evidence and report log and the first-hour recovery plan for the moments after a suspicious payment.
Put a household plan in place with The Senior Fraud Defense & First-Hour Recovery Kit.
This article was prepared with AI assistance and reviewed against the linked official sources.
