Three Los Angeles–area nonprofit officials have been arrested in a federal probe alleging they siphoned millions in public funds intended for homelessness services into personal expenditures and private ventures. Michael Young of Home at Last is accused of diverting roughly $12 million, including about $1 million allegedly used to open a nightclub and bingo hall. Donye Mitchell and SSG employee Lakiya Malone face charges tied to fraudulent grants, inflated pay and bribery; Alexander Soofer has pleaded guilty after admitting to misusing millions. The cases come against the backdrop of a deep affordable-housing shortage and roughly 72,000 people experiencing homelessness in L.A. on any given night.
LA Nonprofit Leaders Accused of Stealing Millions — Funds Allegedly Used to Open Nightclub and Bingo Hall
A rendering shows the nightclub that Michael Young, founder of the Culver City–based homeless services nonprofit Home at Last, allegedly spent around $1 million of misappropriated funds to finance. (Six Seven Five Lounge)
Three executives tied to Los Angeles–area homeless-service nonprofits have been arrested in a federal probe that alleges they diverted public funds meant for people experiencing homelessness into personal expenses and private businesses, including an Inglewood nightclub and a bingo hall.
Charges And Allegations
Michael Young, founder of the Culver City nonprofit Home at Last, is charged with wire fraud in a multiyear scheme prosecutors say diverted roughly $12 million from the organization into his personal accounts and expenditures. Authorities allege Young steered multimillion-dollar contracts to companies secretly affiliated with him, submitted false procurement documents, and created sham vendors for catering and janitorial services to route public payments back to himself.
Prosecutors say about $1 million of the alleged proceeds financed an upscale R&B and jazz venue in Inglewood called Six Seven Five Lounge and an adjacent bingo operation, House Bingo, which Young reportedly promoted as a nonprofit fundraiser. The complaint also alleges nearly $300,000 in luxury travel and entertainment charges, $48,000 for a Tahiti trip, more than $140,000 to restore a vintage Chevrolet Impala, and roughly $500,000 used to buy commercial real estate unrelated to the nonprofit’s mission. If convicted, Young faces up to 20 years in federal prison.
Related Cases
Donye Mitchell, CEO of Big Blue Umbrella (BBU), is charged with wire fraud for allegedly obtaining more than $1.2 million from a county-funded provider doing business as Amity Foundation (Epidaurus) through false representations about BBU’s services and affiliations. Prosecutors allege Mitchell inflated his salary and used grant money for personal expenses, including paying a bail bondsman after a 2024 arrest, buying a PlayStation, and reducing personal credit-card debt. Amity rescinded the award after disbursing $315,000 when BBU failed to meet milestones. Mitchell faces up to 20 years if convicted and has a prior mail-fraud conviction related to unemployment benefits.
Lakiya Malone, an employee of Special Service for Groups (SSG) assigned to the Homeless Outreach Program Integrated Care System (HOPICS), was charged with 21 counts including conspiracy, wire fraud, and bribery. Authorities allege she accepted more than $180,000 in bribes and kickbacks from Alexander Soofer, executive director of Abundant Blessings, in exchange for steering more than $17 million in SSG contracts to his nonprofit. Investigators say Malone and Soofer submitted "ghost" referrals—using real names but forged documentation—to inflate billing.
Alexander Soofer previously pleaded guilty to wire fraud and money laundering after admitting that Abundant Blessings received $23 million intended to combat homelessness and that he pocketed at least $2 million. Law enforcement seized luxury watches, precious-metal coins, and hidden cash from Soofer’s Westwood Village home. Under his plea agreement, Soofer is expected to repay $2 million by September 2027.
Impact And Context
Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman criticized the alleged conduct as a betrayal of taxpayers who fund homelessness services. The prosecutions come amid one of the nation’s largest homeless populations: LAHSA estimates about 72,000 people are unhoused on any given night in Los Angeles, and a 2025 report from the California Housing Partnership found more than 485,000 low-income renter households in L.A. County lack access to affordable housing.
Note: All defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law. The article reports allegations from charging documents and prosecutors.
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