Arrest warrant issued

Ex-Margate grants manager accused in kickback scheme

A former Margate city employee arranged to get more than $33,000 in kickbacks, as well as repairs at her house, in exchange for giving builders contracts on city projects at inflated prices, police say. An arrest warrant was issued Wednesday for Kim Liakos, Margate’s former grants manager, who is charged with 11 counts including bribery, bid tampering, unlawful compensation and grand theft.

Police were searching for her Thursday. Liakos’ attorney, Michael Weinstein, said his client is currently seeking medical treatment, and plans to turn herself in to authorities. She’s “not in any way, shape or form running away from this,” he said.

Liakos, who turned in her passport Thursday, will plead not guilty at her arraignment, Weinstein said.

Police allege she is behind the city’s loss of nearly $1 million from state and federal grants intended to help lowincome people buy and fix up homes.

Liakos, 58, was hired in 2011 to manage four programs that used state and federal money to purchase and fix up houses and sell them below market value to low-income families, and revitalize existing homes to people whose income qualified them for the help.

The 22-month police investigation involved a forensic accountant scouring paperwork on the city’s affordable housing program and Liakos’ relationship with several contractors.

Police said she handpicked the contractors to do the work by giving them confidential bid information so they would win the city contracts.

Margate police said Liakos profited by $33,250 between March 2014 and September 2015, and received services from the contractors, such as home repairs.

According to the arrest affidavit, the owner of Modern Day Construction bought her a water heater for her Coral Springs home and hired subcontractors for work she wanted done.

The owner told investigators Liakos asked him for cash and he agreed “with the understanding that he would be allowed to inflate his invoices to recoup the money he gave Liakos,” according to the arrest affidavit.

The owner, Jean Danny Augustin, gave her cash for a year and half until she gave him her bank account information at BB&T and he deposited $12,500 over seven instances, according to a police report.

The owner of EPS Construction, Antonio Figueroa, also told investigators Liakos asked for $1,500 and he “agreed to the loan because Liakos controlled the entire grants program,” according to public records.

He told investigators he delivered it to her in a white envelope at City Hall, police said.

Between March 2014 and July 2015 he gave her $17,750, police said. His business partner gave her another $3,000, according to records.

“Figueroa felt the only way to secure work with the city of Margate was to provide Liakos with money when Liakos requested it,” according to the arrest warrant.

He also did work at her house for free and told investigators he inflated his bills to the city "to recoup the money he spent on Liakos’ residence,” according to the arrest warrant.

Figueroa “admitted that he submitted invoices for payment for work that was never completed or that was inflated” by more than $28,000, according to the arrest warrant.

The owner of a third contractor, Access Builders, told investigators he also did work at Liakos’ home for free, police said. She never asked to borrow money but owner Edward Cancio “knew that he could inflate his invoices,” police said.

In other cities, he earned 10 to 20 percent profit, but in Margate, he told police he was earning 50 to 60 percent, according to the arrest warrant.

Liakos resigned from her $72,771-a-year position in September 2015 when she learned of the investigation, officials said.

The city’s finance department first noticed discrepancies in billing, officials said.

According to the forensic investigation that combed through paperwork from 2011 through 2015 and that had a “consistent lack of documentation,” Liakos oversaw money from grant programs such as Community Development Block Grant and State Housing Initiative Partnership.

The report alleges a misallocation of more than $103,000 in grant money where money that was supposed to come from one grant came from another.

The accountant also estimated “project overages” of $972,774.

The investigation found “many inconsistencies, missing documentation, internal control issues, suspect behavior by city staff, contractors, fund misallocations, expense overages [and] unrecorded” loans.

In one example, a contractor — All-Pro Cleaning and Restoration owned by Augustin — billed $13,400 for asbestos remediation work although the company didn’t have a license, “thus bringing into question whether the work has actually been done,” according to the report.

A second contractor also billed for the same remediation work “therefore this property paid twice for work that, most likely, was only performed once,” according to the accountant’s report.

An accountant concluded there wasn’t enough oversight at City Hall.

“There was a general lack of supervision and accounting internal controls, which created an atmosphere for fraud to exist,” according to the report.

Prosecutors declined to say whether any contractors identified by police faced any penalty. “It’s an active open case,” said Ron Ishoy, spokesman for the State Attorney’s Office. “We’re not in position to discuss aspects of the investigation.”

Cancio and Augustin could not be reached for comment Thursday. Figueroa declined comment.

City spokeswoman Alison Saffold said Thursday that an internal investigation is ongoing.

Liakos