Former Chester housing officials plead guilty in fraud and bribery schemes
Former Chester Housing Authority officials pleaded guilty in federal court this week over schemes that bilked the office out of over $600,000.
Two former Chester Housing Authority officials have pleaded guilty to fraud and bribery charges in federal court, one month after they and another man were accused of bilking the office of more than $600,000.
Douglas E. Daniel, 65, Philadelphia, and Norman D. Wise, 57, of Mullica Hill, waived their arraignment hearings and pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia this week.
The third man, Leonard F. Coleman, 53, of Paulsboro, is scheduled for arraignment on Wednesday. The contractor is accused of one count of offering bribes concerning federal programs.
U.S. Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero’s office said last month that Wise, who worked as the housing authority’s director of public housing, and Daniel, Wise’s chief assistant, had created a company to fraudulently bill the authority for work performed by salaried employees.
In some cases, prosecutors said, the jobs — landscaping, painting, window replacements, and other construction or renovation work at authority properties — were not performed at all.
The former officials pocketed $544,967 between 2019 and 2023, according to prosecutors. Both have been fired from their positions.
Wise’s attorney, Arthur Thomas Donato, Jr., provided the following statement:
“Mr. Wise is a good man, a military veteran, and has never been in trouble before. He immediately accepted responsibility for the offenses he committed, cooperated with the government in their investigation, and has entered a plea of guilty. He will comply with whatever sentence he receives and, thereafter, lead a productive and responsible life.”
Attorneys for the remaining defendants could not be reached.
In a separate scheme, prosecutors accused Wise and Daniel of accepting bribes from Coleman, the contractor.
Prosecutors said that between July 2014 and March 2022, the former officials accepted $76,400 in payments from Coleman that were wired directly to their bank accounts.
The plot saw Wise and Daniel award Coleman’s company $2.5 million in CHA contracts, according to prosecutors.
The former officials inflated the value of these contracts, prosecutors allege, with Coleman kicking back payments using the surplus sums.
Wise and Daniel will appear in court for sentencing in early 2024.