Ex-Cop Fined $30G For Hiding Income To Get Housing Aid

A former NYPD officer was sentenced to three years' probation and a stiff fine for defrauding a Federal housing program, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District announced.

U.S. District Judge Deborah A. Batts Sept. 22 sentenced Eddie Speller, 32, in Manhattan Federal Court. She also ordered him to pay $32,276 to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, said U.S. Attorney Michael J. Garcia.

Mr. Speller started receiving Section 8 housing subsidies, which help low-income families pay for housing, in 2003, two years before he joined the Police Department. After becoming a cop, Mr. Speller underreported his income to continue receiving subsidies. An investigation revealed he never told HUD he had joined the NYPD, which increased his annual salary. Mr. Speller received more than $30,000 in Section 8 subsidies for which he was not entitled.

He pleaded guilty to fraud before Judge Batts in March. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the Office of the Inspector General and the NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau worked on the investigation.