WASHINGTON — A former D.C. Housing Authority employee who invented a fictitious veterans housing program and forged federal voucher documents pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to a scheme that defrauded private mortgage lenders of more than $15 million, U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro announced.
Richard Cunningham, 55, a District of Columbia resident who became a real estate developer, pleaded guilty before Judge Trevor N. McFadden to charges of false statements to a mortgage lending business. He faces a maximum statutory penalty of 30 years in prison and a $1 million fine. Sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 4.
“Richard Cunningham didn’t just defraud lenders, he fabricated federal voucher documents, forged signatures, and invented a veterans housing program that never existed, all to line his own pockets,” Pirro said. “Exploiting the name and sacrifice of American veterans to commit fraud is particularly offensive, and my office will pursue those abuses with the full weight of federal law.”
Court documents show the scheme ran from August 2020 through May 2024 in two phases. In the first, Cunningham applied for six secondary renovation loans from a Virginia-based private mortgage company, submitting falsified mortgage statements that significantly understated the balances owed on his properties to inflate his apparent equity. The lender funded all six loans, totaling about $7.4 million.
In the second phase, Cunningham sought renovation financing from an Oregon-based private mortgage company for two additional District properties. He fabricated lease documents purporting to be from a “Veterans Assistance Payments” program run by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development — a program that does not exist. Cunningham had taken genuine Housing Assistance Program lease documents from HUD’s Housing Choice Voucher program and altered them, changing “HAP” to “VAP” throughout, then filled them with forged entries and signatures to make it appear veterans were living at the properties under a federal voucher program. He also submitted fabricated rent rolls falsely showing all tenants held vouchers from the Department of Veterans Affairs. The lender funded one of the two loans, in the amount of $4.7 million; the other application was rejected.
In total, Cunningham sought about $14.9 million from the two lenders and received about $12.1 million based on his false statements. The investigation was conducted by the FBI Washington Field Office and HUD’s Office of Inspector General. HUD-OIG Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Samantha R. Miller prosecuted the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia.
The Department of Justice on April 7 announced the creation of the National Fraud Enforcement Division, whose “core mission is to zealously investigate and prosecute those who steal or fraudulently misuse taxpayer dollars.” The division supports President Trump’s Task Force to Eliminate Fraud, chaired by Vice President J.D. Vance, targeting fraud, waste, and abuse within federal benefit programs. Cunningham’s sentencing hearing before Judge McFadden is set for Dec. 4.