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Tenants and attorney allege rent diversion at CMHA property; council offers to investigate
Summary
Multiple tenants and an attorney told Cincinnati City Council they have evidence that payments at a CMHA-managed property were redirected by a property manager or agent; the council asked commenters to share information with staff and said officials will look into possible criminal referrals.
Several tenants and an attorney addressed Cincinnati City Council during public comment to allege a pattern of improper rent handling at a CMHA-managed property on Rutland Avenue, saying payments and money orders were redirected and tenant ledgers do not match corporate records.
Attorney Chris Travis (speaker 5), who said he represents resident Marvin Barnes, told the council that "those rents have been being redirected, to their personal attention," and asked CMHA and Touchstone to make records available so the matter can be audited, credits restored to impacted residents and processes changed to prevent recurrence. Barnes (speaker 6) provided more detail about money orders, inconsistent ledgers and his belief that manager Dion Crockett directed payments improperly.
Other tenants corroborated the claims: Shane C. White (speaker 7) said he was instructed to stop using RentCafe and told to bring payments to the manager; Patricia Gillum (speaker 15) described a multi-year dispute involving alleged miscounted payments, threatened evictions and demands that she paid amounts she says are unjustified. Commenters repeatedly asked the city to hold the property manager and Touchstone accountable.
The mayor and council acknowledged the seriousness of the allegations and offered procedural next steps. The mayor asked commenters and their attorney to share contact information with city staff so the administration and legal counsel can follow up; a council member (speaker 9) suggested the complaints could warrant Cincinnati Police involvement and said he would look into it. The chamber did not take a formal vote or adopt an ordinance on the matter during the meeting.
What the council recorded: the public-comment period included multiple speakers alleging tenant-payment diversion and requesting audits and enforcement. City officials asked the speakers to provide documentation and contact information, and staff were directed to accept that material for follow-up investigation. No formal findings were announced at the meeting; the matter was left open for staff review and possible criminal referral if warranted.
Next steps: City staff and council representatives invited the tenants and their counsel to submit evidence to city staff in the back of the chamber and said they would assist in evaluating the claims and coordinating with appropriate agencies, which may include law enforcement or housing authorities.
