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By JULIE BOSMAN
OCTOBER 22, 2009
In the city’s rich history of fraud schemes, the cases described this week
by the city’s Department of Investigation would not seem to rank up
there with mortgage scams or fake Medicare patients: Six women were
accused of posing as victims of domestic violence to gain subsidized
housing.
Such cases are so rare, and the issue so sensitive, that city o�cials and
advocates for domestic violence victims said that they are not usually
on the lookout for fraud when people come forward with claims of
abuse.
More than 36,000 people have sought help at the centers since 2005
and can receive legal support, counseling and emergency shelter,
among other services. Ms. Jimenez said she believed that there was no
fraud involved in any of those cases.
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have been beaten by their spouses or companions. The women who
were arrested forged documents, including police reports, identifying
themselves as abuse victims to gain priority for government subsidized
housing, o�cials said this week.
There are long waiting lists for the housing, and only three groups of
people are given priority: former foster care youths, intimidated
witnesses referred by prosecutors, and victims of domestic violence.
At the city o�ce in the Bronx where families apply for shelter, people
who identify themselves as domestic violence victims are interviewed
for up to an hour to determine if they need emergency shelter.
That said, the system is not “set up to catch people,” she said, adding
that she has never encountered a case of fraud.
But in many cases, agencies will provide help even if victims of abuse
have not called the police or sought treatment for injuries.
“Some of them can’t or don’t have the documents they need,” said
Maureen Curtis, the associate vice president of Bronx Criminal Justice
and Community Programs for Safe Horizon. “Does it mean that the
person is not a victim of domestic violence? No.”
PUBLIC HEALTH
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