Sunday, November 1, 2009

Scam Artist Awarded AIDS/HIV Contract

WASHINGTON DC: In 2005, Robin Beale was convicted in federal court for taking part in a local mortgage fraud scheme that bilked lenders out of hundreds of thousands of dollars.

One year later, she landed a million-dollar consulting contract -- from the District's AIDS program.

Beale Inc. was hired to provide experts, meals and note-taking to two advisory groups that help direct the spending of tens of millions of AIDS dollars. From the start, group members complained about the quality of Beale's work.

Yet the D.C. Health Department's HIV/AIDS Administration paid Beale's company more than $2 million over three years, approving invoices that listed unnamed employees and subcontractors, rent for a high-end office that was rarely used, and start-up costs for furniture and equipment that city officials later deemed improper, The Washington Post found.

In March, the HIV/AIDS Administration cut ties with the company. Now, advisory group members want to know what happened to the money.

Read the full report here.

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