Buffalo Feds: Rogue Housing Counselor For Local Non-Profit Agency Ripped Off $200K From Dozens Needing Help Fighting Foreclosure

In Buffalo, New York, The Buffalo News reports:

• A woman hired to help struggling Western New Yorkers save their homes from foreclosure has been accused of lying and stealing their money so she could gamble at local casinos. Lori J. Macakanja, 35, of Dunkirk, was fired last year as a housing counselor for HomeFront Inc., a not-for-profit agency on Delaware Avenue in Buffalo.

• The U.S. Attorney's Office claims Macakanja stole about $200,000 from about 100 clients who went to the agency for help in fighting foreclosures. She was charged Friday with felony counts of mail fraud and falsifying documents.

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• Officials at HomeFront dismissed Macakanja and cooperated with the investigation after learning of the crimes, and none of the agency's other employees have been accused of wrongdoing, authorities said. Brian M. Cacciotti, CEO of HomeFront, told The Buffalo News on Friday that Macakanja's actions were totally out of step with the agency's procedures and its mission. "These were the willful acts of a rogue employee," Cacciotti said. "Our mission is to help people."

For more, see Fired housing counselor charged in scam (Accused of diverting funds meant for averting foreclosure to own uses, including gambling).