A Staten Island married couple were charged with fraud for taking more than $750,000 in Build it Back (BIB) funds after falsely claiming a home they no longer lived in was their primary residence when Hurricane Sandy hit nearly five years ago, federal prosecutors.
The couple claimed their primary residence at 6 Topping St. in New Dorp Beach was damaged during the storm, according to court papers. The couple had actually moved out of the house at least seven months earlier, prosecutors say.
Investigators said they caught on to the scam after interviewing neighbors who told them the family had moved out months before the October 2012 storm hit and the residence had been left empty, according to court documents.
At one point neighbors called the FDNY after smelling gas at the residence and responders had to shut down a gas line in the home. Investigators then obtained the lease singed at their current home and spoke with their landlord.
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