A former building inspector with the City of St. Louis, Missouri, Adebanjo Popoola, has pleaded guilty to defrauding the city of approximately 1.64 million dollars by diverting public funds meant for rehabilitating dilapidated buildings to himself and his relatives.
Popoola, 57, pleaded guilty to three counts of wire fraud before the U.S. District Court in St. Louis.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Popoola supervised key aspects of two city-funded rehabilitation programmes—Stable Communities STL and Prop NS—while serving as a building division inspector.
Stable Communities STL was funded through the federal American Rescue Plan Act to rehabilitate privately owned properties, while Prop NS focused on residential properties owned by the City of St. Louis’ Land Reutilization Authority (LRA) using city-issued general obligation bonds.
Prosecutors said Popoola’s responsibilities included identifying properties for rehabilitation, preparing project scopes, reviewing and awarding contracts, inspecting completed work and approving payments to contractors.
Court documents revealed that Popoola orchestrated a scheme in which his sister, a resident of Texas who had never visited St. Louis, registered Farst Construction LLC in Missouri in October 2022.
His future wife also established Premier Finish Contractors LLC in February 2021.
Between June 2023 and November 2024, Popoola directed approximately 1.4 million dollars in Stable Communities STL contracts and an additional 339,500 dollars in Prop NS contracts to Farst Construction.
He also awarded about 1.3 million dollars in Stable Communities STL contracts and approximately 853,100 dollars in Prop NS contracts to Premier Finish Contractors between October 2023 and May 2024.
Authorities said Farst Construction received about 1.79 million dollars, while Premier Finish Contractors received approximately 1.53 million dollars out of the 7.19 million dollars disbursed under the Stable Communities STL programme, accounting for about 42 per cent of all funds distributed.
Investigators found that several projects for which the companies received payment were either incomplete or not carried out as required, despite Popoola certifying that the work had been satisfactorily completed.
After subcontractors were paid, prosecutors said Popoola, his wife and his sister shared approximately 1.64 million dollars in public funds.
The diverted money was allegedly deposited into joint bank accounts held by Popoola and his wife, as well as accounts he shared with his sister.
According to prosecutors, Popoola used the proceeds to pay residential mortgages, purchase and repair vehicles, finance travel, fund his September 2023 wedding in Hawaii, gamble at casinos and cover dining and other entertainment expenses.
The court also heard that Popoola concealed his relationship with the companies by falsely declaring on City Employee Secondary Employment Questionnaires in 2022 and 2023 that he had no personal interest in any city contract or business.
His wife and sister were also accused of falsely certifying on contract documents that no City of St. Louis official involved in the projects had any direct or indirect financial interest in the contracts.
Popoola is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 6.
Each count of wire fraud carries a maximum sentence of 20 years imprisonment, a fine of up to 250,000 dollars, or both. He will also be required to pay restitution.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), with assistance from the City of St. Louis Comptroller’s Office, while Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith is prosecuting the case.
