Federal Corruption
Corruption is the biggest fear among citizens of the United States, as it happens so frequently. Therefore, this is a major area of concern, and is something that is largely addressed throughout the nation. However, it seems that as much as political leaders say they are going to do something about the corruption that occurs behind the scenes, it continues to happen.
Subsequently, yet again, there was another major piece of federal corruption in the NYCHA that has taken place, and results in one of the largest takedowns to ever occur.
NYCHA Takedown the Biggest Ever
There were around 70 New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA) employees that were arrested as part of a corruption investigation that is taking place. It is unbelievable how long this corruption scheme was going for. It started around the year 2013, and up until 2023 is when the investigation had begun into this corruption.
That is an entire decade that it took for these employees to be taken into custody. There were many NYCHA superintendents, as well as assistants, who participated in a classic “pay to play” scheme, involving taking “$2 million in kickbacks from contractors in exchange for being awarded small jobs,” according to ABC News.
All in all, it seems it was more of a bribery action from the NYCHA. They had demanded their money in a completely different, illegal manner.
The Future of Political Corruption
It was clear that the DOJ was trying to send a message after this 70-person takedown. It shows that they will find and criminally prosecute those that take advantage of the system that they are privileged enough to have access to. Furthermore, this shows how many people can follow the illegal activities that one conducts. They do not care about the possible implications of it. Not only did they lose their jobs, they lost their freedom, and they lost any future possibility of any political job.
It truly is unfortunate that this even happened in the first place. However, this is certainly a lesson that they have learned, and their time behind bars will certainly further help them learn this lesson. The hope is that federal corruption can lessen as much as possible, but it seems unlikely.
Written by David Loran Jr
Sources:
ABC News: 70 NYC housing workers charged in largest bribery takedown in DOJ history
ABC 7 News: NYCHA bust is biggest single-day bribery takedown in DOJ history, officials say
Featured Image Courtesy of D.C.Atty’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
Inset Image Courtesy of Sterling G’s Flickr Page – Creative Commons License
