CHRISTIANSTED — After a two and half week-long trial, a federal jury in St. Croix found Darin Richardson, 56, of St. Thomas, guilty of federal and territorial charges relating to conflict of interest, making false statements, bank fraud and money laundering, U.S. Attorney Delia L. Smith said today.
According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, while serving as the Chief Operating
Officer at the Virgin Islands Housing Finance Authority, (VIHFA), Richardson solicited $107,000
from the managing partner of Island Services Group, (ISG), a contractor of the VIHFA. Richardson
received the $107,000 via wire transfer from ISG on February 7, 2022. Thereafter, in his capacity
as the COO of VIHFA, Richardson continued to approve VIHFA payments and sign checks to ISG
for alleged services provided on their Warehouse Management Services woodpile contract. When
interviewed on February 14, 2023, by agents of HUD Office of Inspector General and Virgin Islands
Office of Inspector General, Richardson falsely represented that he had recused himself from the
ISG contract.
On August 24, 2020, Richardson requested a construction loan from Banco Popular Puerto Rico in
the amount of $200,000 to construct a single-family home. Included in the loan agreement was a
detailed estimate for the construction costs Richardson represented as a basis for the loan amount.
The construction estimate of $185,00 was presented on the letterhead of Four Star Construction,
LLC. The estimate was actually created by Richardson, not Four Star. Richardson in fact, directed
that Four Star create the estimate on their letterhead to give the appearance that the estimate for the
construction cost was created by Four Star. Consequently, Banco Popular relied upon Richardson’s
estimate in approving the loan in the amount of $185,000.
The construction loan was drawn upon in three installments. The third loan installment was drawn
upon by Richardson on January 11, 2022, in the amount of $62,150. Richardson signed a “Receipt
of Construction Draw” wherein he represented that the third loan installment of the loan proceeds
would be used solely for the construction of the single-family home. Richardson also affirmed by
his signature that the representations and warranties in the related loan agreement remained true and
accurate. Based on these representations, Banco Popular electronically disbursed the third loan
installment to Richardson in the amount of $62,150.
Thereafter, on February 8, 2022, Richardson used $50,500 from the third loan installment, together
with the $107,000 payment from the managing partner of ISG to purchase an entirely different
property in St. Thomas. The total payment of $157,500 was made payable to the US Marshal Service
as the property that Richardson attempted to purchase was sold at an auction by the US Marshal
Service.
In announcing the conviction, U.S. Attorney Delia Smith commended the outstanding investigative work
of agents of the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General, the Federal Bureau of
Investigation, Department of Housing and Urban Development, Office of Inspector General, and the
Virgin Islands Office of Inspector General.
“Darin Richardson committed a crime by enriching himself at the expense of his duty to the people of the Virgin Islands,” U.S. Attorney Smith said. “The public trusts that Virgin Islands government officials will act with the highest integrity. Instead, Richardson acted in his own self interest to improperly profit from his official position. The Department of Justice is committed to holding accountable public servants who act with unlawful conflicts of interest, prioritizing financial gain over their ethical duties.”
“Darin Richardson took advantage of his position and violated the public trust by committing fraud against HUD-assisted housing programs intended to provide disaster recovery assistance to residents affected by natural disasters,” said Acting Special Agent-in-Charge Tyrone Hardy with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General (OIG). “HUD OIG remains steadfast in our commitment to working with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and law enforcement partners to aggressively pursue those who engage in activities that threaten the integrity of HUD programs.”
“Public officials who abuse their positions for personal gain erode the trust that is essential to good governance,” said Samuel Dorta, Acting Special Agent in Charge of the FBI San Juan Field Office. “The FBI is committed to ensuring that those who engage in fraud and corruption are held accountable. We will continue working with our law enforcement partners to root out corruption and protect the integrity of public institutions.”
“This guilty conviction serves as a reminder that SBA-OIG remains committed to leveraging the
skills and expertise of our special agents, specifically in the matters of procurement and contracting
fraud, for the greater good of the taxpayer,” said Amaleka McCall-Brathwaite, SBA-OIG’s Eastern
Region Special Agent in Charge.
“The Office of the Virgin Islands Inspector General is committed to assisting our federal partners in
their efforts to protect our community from fraud,” said Delia M. Thomas, Certified Fraud Examiner,
VI Inspector General. “We believe that defending our programs’ resources strengthens our community. Every fraudulent dollar taken lowers the quality of the services our government provides. Therefore, we must remain vigilant and not tolerate or allow fraud to take root in our community.”
Assistant U.S. Attorneys Daniel H. Huston and Cherrisse R. Woods prosecuted the case
