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An official with the Midtown Redevelopment Authority (MRA) and two contractors are facing corruption charges after allegedly laundering more than $8 million in taxpayer dollars.
Todd Edwards, a former real estate asset manager for the MRA, is charged with abuse of official capacity, money laundering and theft. Veronica Ugorji and Kenneth Jones, two former contractors for the same authority, are charged with abuse of official capacity and money laundering.
Investigators say Edwards was in charge of invoicing and contracting with potential vendors. He allegedly used his position, with the help of Ugorji and Jones, to misuse millions in public funds — initially meant to cover the cost of landscaping and maintenance throughout Midtown — to buy expensive cars, houses, lavish trips and even pornography.
They were all in custody as of Friday afternoon.
The Midtown Redevelopment Authority and Midtown’s Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone 2 were both created in the 90s and work together to “foster economic development” by making quality-of-life improvements to streets, sidewalks and utilities, according to the authority’s website. Houston’s Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones, or TIRZs, collect a majority of a neighborhood's property taxes to cover the cost of these projects. Each zone is made up of a board of directors who decide how the money is spent.
The board of directors for the MRA and the TIRZ 2 consist of the same nine members.
During a press conference on Friday, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said she believed the board was unable to “provide oversight that was thorough enough to catch a very simple scheme.”
“The scheme was so unsophisticated that the slightest investigation, or even second look, would have revealed a great deal,” Ogg said. “It’s public corruption 101.”
This comes after Mayor John Whitmire replaced a majority of Montrose’s TIRZ 27 board — he had publicly disagreed with several of its community improvement projects. On Friday, he didn’t confirm whether he would replace anyone on Midtown’s nine-member board.
However, Whitmire said he plans to review all the TIRZs throughout the city, adding that he believed “more investigative work will reveal more conflicts.” Ogg later clarified that the city’s review wouldn’t involve the DA’s office.
"The TIRZs play a real important role in the maintenance and redevelopment of our city," Whitmire said. "It's outrageous that we've discovered that they have criminal intent."
The investigation began last fall after years of public outcry from Midtown residents, like Brian Van Tubergen, who’ve been complaining about a lack of maintenance throughout the area’s plethora of vacant lots. One of the authority’s goals has been to transform these empty lots into affordable housing, but as of now, hundreds of lots remain vacant.
“We begged and pleaded with Midtown redevelopment authorities, board of directors, city officials and community leaders to hear our complaints,” said Van Tubergen during Friday’s press conference.
According to Ogg, investigators are currently following the money as part of “a lengthier investigation.” They’ll later focus on real estate transactions, Ogg said.