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Georgia DCA RICO case: 4 convicted in attempt to defraud state agency

By FOX 5 Atlanta Digital Team
Published  January 13, 2026 8:43pm EST
DeKalb County
FOX 5 Atlanta

The Brief

    • Four defendants were convicted for defrauding the Georgia Department of Community Affairs of nearly $200,000 using fake contracts.
    • The schemes involved payments for redundant cleaning services and a $120,000 "ghost" online tool that was never created.
    • All four conspirators are now legally barred from seeking government employment or handling public funds.

DECATUR, Ga. - Four people have been convicted for their part in a racketeering scheme that defrauded the Peach State out of nearly $200,000 through fake cleaning contracts and a nonexistent online tool for the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.

What we know:

Corey Alston, 48, and Quinton Tate, 44, the final two people accused in the fraud, pleaded guilty, DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announced Tuesday.

Alston took a negotiated guilty plea for a violation of the RICO Act, and Tate pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the state on Monday.

The backstory:

The investigation, led by the Office of the Inspector General, revealed two separate plots to siphon money from the DCA’s Housing Assistance Division between 2017 and 2019.

In the first scheme, Shawn Williams, the division's former director, and her cousin Toyoa Andrews, a DCA employee, approved a cleaning contract for a satellite office. The state paid more than $64,000 to a company owned by Andrews, despite the fact that the office landlord already provided cleaning services.

In the second scheme, which took place in 2019, Alston, Andrews, and Tate used Tate’s company to submit $120,000 in invoices for a new online tool. Although Andrews and Williams told agency leadership the service was completed and in use, the tool was never created.

The other two co-conspirators were sentenced on Dec. 18, 2025. Williams, 62, pleaded guilty to a RICO violation and was sentenced to 15 years of probation and ordered to pay $104,170 in restitution. Andrews, 52, also pleaded guilty to a RICO violation and received 20 years, with two years in custody suspended upon the payment of $50,000 in restitution.

What's next:

DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Courtney L. Johnson sentenced Alston to 20 years, with three years to be served in custody. Alston must also pay $30,000 in restitution and is barred from government employment or any role involving public funds.

Tate received five years of probation, a $5,000 fine, and 250 hours of community service. Under the First Offender Act, Tate’s record may be cleared if he completes his sentence. He is also banned from government contracting or involvement in HUD-related programs.

Both Williams and Andrews are prohibited from seeking future government employment or positions with access to public funds.

The Source: The DeKalb County District Attorney's Office provided the details for this article.

DeKalb CountyNewsCrime and Public Safety