Hector Colon, a 47-year-old Bronx resident and former superintendent of the New York City Housing Authority (“NYCHA”), was sentenced today to 18 months in prison for soliciting and accepting approximately $30,000 in bribes from contractors in exchange for awarding repair contracts or approving repair work worth at least $400,000, federal prosecutors announced on Tuesday, May 6.
Jay Clayton, U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, reported that Colon’s sentence was issued by U.S. District Judge Lewis J. Liman, who also presided over a one-week trial in which Colon was found guilty of bribery and extortion under color of official authority.
“Hector Colon abused his position at NYCHA to demand bribes from contractors for his personal gain,” Clayton said. “The women and men of this Office are committed to pursuing those who abuse the public’s trust.”
According to the indictment, public court documents, court testimony, and evidence presented at trial, NYCHA is the country’s largest public housing authority, providing housing to New Yorkers throughout the city and receiving over $1.5 billion in federal funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (“HUD”) each year.
When repairs or construction work at NYCHA housing require the employment of outside contractors, the services are normally bought through a bidding procedure. However, if the value of a contract is less than a specific threshold, designated staff at NYCHA developments, including superintendents, may pick a contractor of their choice without seeking multiple bids. In order for the contractor to be paid by NYCHA under either type of contract, a NYCHA employee must confirm that the job has been completed satisfactorily.
Prosecutors allege that Colon, a superintendent at three distinct NYCHA developments in Manhattan between 2018 and 2022, sought and took payment in exchange for NYCHA contracts. They claimed he demanded contractors pay bribes in order to be awarded contracts or bribe payments after the contractor completed the work and required a NYCHA official to sign off on the completed job so that the contractor could be reimbursed by NYCHA.
They stated that Colón normally demanded 10% of the contract value, ranging from $500 to $1,000 depending on the size of the contract. They said that Colon demanded and accepted approximately $30,000 in bribes in exchange for awarding no-bid contracts or approving payment on already issued contracts valued around $400,000.
According to prosecutors, 62 of the 70 NYCHA employees detained in February 2024 for bribery and extortion have pleaded guilty, and three have been convicted following trial. They stated that Colon is the second of three NYCHA employees convicted after trial to be sentenced. They added that the cases of the remaining five defendants, who are assumed innocent unless and until proven guilty, are still pending.
According to federal prosecutors, if you suspect you have information about bribery, extortion, or other illegal activity by NYCHA workers, please contact [email protected] or (212) 306-3356. They advised that if you were involved in such conduct, you may consider self-disclosing through the SDNY Whistleblower Pilot Program at [email protected].
Colon was sentenced to two years of supervised release, as well as $30,000 in restitution and forfeiture.
Clayton praised the outstanding investigative work of the New York City Department of Investigation, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security—Homeland Security Investigations (“HSI”), the HUD Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Department of Labor—Office of Inspector General, who work collaboratively as part of the HSI Document and Benefit Fraud Task Force, as well as the Special Agents and Task Force Officers of the U.S. Attorney’s
This case is part of an Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force (“OCDETF”) investigation. OCDETF identifies, disrupts, and dismantles criminal organizations using a prosecutor-led, intelligence-driven, multi-agency strategy. Additional information on the OCDETF Program is available at https://www.justice.gov/OCDETF.
This case is being handled by the Public Corruption Unit of the United States Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. The prosecution is led by Assistant US Attorneys Jacob R. Fiddelman, Catherine Ghosh, Jane Kim, Jerry J. Fang, and Meredith C. Foster, with support from Paralegal Specialists Jayda Foote and Shirel Garzon.
