A longtime welfare fraud investigator for city government was fired after pleading guilty to committing housing fraud against the federal government, The Post has learned.
Anti-fraud prober Sylvia Battle-Black, a 17-year veteran of the Human Resources Administration, admitted lying about her income to obtain $62,376 in government-subsidized housing benefits from 2006 to 2011, prosecutors said.
Incredibly, Black for six years didn’t disclose on her applications for Section 8 housing that she was employed as a HRA fraud investigator since 1996.
She earned $49,528 a year.
But Black only reported $4,800, which she claimed came from child support payments, according to the Inspector General for the US Department of Housing & Urban Development.
Black was living in a taxpayer-subsidized apartment in Brooklyn that was supposed to be set aside for a needy family.
She pled guilty to one felony count of embezzlement of government property in Manhattan Federal Court after being indicted by US Attorney Preet Bharara and is awaiting sentencing next month.
HRA fired Black after a city administrative law judge ruled that her crime constituted “moral turpitude.”
During her disciplinary hearing, Black pleaded to keep her job, admitting what she did was wrong and offering to pay restitution and make amends.
It didn’t take much time for the judge to turned down Brown — pointing out she had committed the very crime she was entrusted with preventing.
Black was employed as an investigator in HRA’s Bureau of Eligibility and Verification. Her duties included reviewing applications for public assistance, which cover rent subsidies, food stamps and Medicaid.
She would interview the applicants and contact landlords and employers.
Her crime came as something of a shock to HRA officials — whose consistently awarded her good performance ratings. She had no disciplinary record.
“Intentional fraud and theft of government benefits are crimes of moral turpitude that invariably lead to termination of employment,” ruled city administrative law judge Alessandra Zorgniotti.
“Not only did respondent commit a crime of moral turpitude, it bears directly to her fitness to perform the job of a fraud investigator. Respondent engaged in conduct that she is responsible for preventing, namely public assistance fraud.”
The hearing judge called Black’s crime a “deliberated, repeated and fundamental breach of trust that conflicts with her job duties and discredits HRA.”
“Termination,” Zorgnitti concluded, “is the only appropriate penalty. Respondent acknowledged that there was no justification for her conduct and that she knew it was wrong.”
HRA spokeswoman Carmen Boon said Black got the ax on Oct. 18.
Black and her lawyer, Alan Roberts, could not be reached for comment.
Black is expected to pay hefty restitution but likely to avoid significant prison time.