Former head of program meant to help low-income Georgians find housing pleads guilty to stealing funds

Written by: A. Smith

Published January 16, 2026 @ 9:57 AM ET

DEKALB COUNTY, Ga. – All four defendants charged in a sweeping racketeering case involving the theft of public housing funds in Georgia have now pleaded guilty, bringing a yearslong investigation into a multimillion-dollar fraud scheme to a close.

Prosecutors said the scheme was orchestrated by Shawn Williams, the former director of the Georgia Housing Assistance Division, an agency responsible for distributing federal Housing and Urban Development funds to help low-income Georgians secure housing.

Williams pleaded guilty in DeKalb County Superior Court as part of a negotiated deal that requires her to pay more than $104,000 in restitution, serve 15 years on probation and permanently refrain from working in government or any position involving public funds.

“This was taxpayer money intended to help some of our most vulnerable residents,” DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston said. “When that money is misused, people suffer immediately, and public trust in government programs erodes.”

A DeKalb County grand jury in 2023 returned a 42-page indictment charging Williams and three co-defendants — Toyao Andrews, Corey Alston and Quinton Tate — with violations of Georgia’s Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act. Prosecutors alleged Williams used her position to steer contracts to shell companies created by her associates.

According to the indictment, more than $64,000 was paid to one fake company for cleaning services at a Norcross office that already had a janitorial contract. Another $120,000 was paid to a different sham company for a new software system that was never built.

Prosecutors said the payments were disguised as legitimate government contracts but were instead part of a coordinated effort to siphon public dollars for personal gain. The indictment also named 14 unindicted co-conspirators and included recorded conversations in which one participant allegedly suggested replicating the fraud “many times” across other state agencies.

Alston was sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to pay $30,000 in restitution. He appeared virtually for sentencing because he is scheduled to surrender to federal authorities in Florida to begin serving a 41-month sentence in a separate Medicare fraud case tied to pandemic relief funds.

Andrews received a 20-year probation sentence and was ordered to pay $10,000 in restitution. Tate was sentenced to five years’ probation and fined $5,000.

Boston said the guilty pleas send a clear message that her office will aggressively pursue public corruption cases.

“To use programs designed to help people as a cover to steal taxpayer money is the worst kind of fraud,” she said. “This office will continue to hold public officials accountable, regardless of position or political climate.”