The head of a Houston nonprofit that provides food and clothing for the city’s homeless was arrested for allegedly running a fraudulent real estate scheme.
Click2Houston reports Rosemary Tucker, who operates “Hoodies 4 Healing,” was arrested last week after a months-long investigation by the Houston Police Department’s Major Offenders Division. According to the arrest charges, Tucker reportedly worked with realtor Michael Okokhere to operate an unauthorized rental business, even though her real estate license was suspended in 2018.
Investigators said Tucker used a stolen identity to lease at least seven properties across Harris and Fort Bend Counties, only to re-lease them and collect payments from tenants. Some of the tenants had criminal records that should have disqualified them from residency in the buildings where they lived.
A bank account associated with Tucker received average monthly deposits exceeding $112,000, with many transactions appearing to be rental payments between the range of $1,600 and $3,000, according to investigators, with some of the funds being used to support Tucker’s apparel business. More than $12,000 went to T-Mobile bills for the business, $6,715 went to a Nissan auto loan bill, and nearly $300 was used for dues at Planet Fitness.
Tucker is among the most prominent nonprofit leaders in Houston, with a social media presence that includes nearly 100,000 Facebook followers. She was released after posting an $85,000 bond. Okokhere was also with arrested on the same charges and has been released on bond.
“That is one of the most popular ways [of fraud] because it’s very easy,” said Troy Cothran, a board member of the Houston Association of Realtors. “No matter how good it sounds, you’ve got to take some time to investigate it. If you get the wrong person there, it can cost you thousands of dollars that you may not have to spend on things that you took a shortcut on.”
