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Officials are responding to complaints that city workers helped themselves to cases of Gatorade, brand-new clothing and other donated items that were intended for victims of Hurricane Katrina. Philip Ramon, chief of staff to Kenner Mayor Philip Capitano, said the city has removed the official who had presided over the distribution.

A 36-year-old woman is being held at the Cobb County (GA) Jail, facing felony theft charges after authorities say she lied about being an evacuee from New Orleans. Officer Wayne Delk said the woman, identified as Beretta Jo Hogg of Lithonia, went to an American Red Cross shelter for evacuees of Hurricane Karina last week in Marietta and told officials she and her 8-year-old son had lost everything in the hurricane. She filled out paperwork and left the shelter with $1,300. Later a woman who felt sorry for Hogg and the boy took them into her home. Police say while...

Possible fraud in wake of Katrina Tuesday, September 13, 2005 - by Rebecca Palsha Anchorage, Alaska - Alaskans have opened up their wallets for the victims of Hurricane Katrina, but there are now concerns over fraud and whether some people are taking advantage of the assistance the American Red Cross is offering. The Red Cross of Alaska says it doesn't know if anyone has committed fraud yet, but it will investigate allegations that one person who has applied for assistance may not be what he seems. Din Smith, a former New Orleans native, arrived at the American Red Cross of...

Louisiana improperly spent relief funds in past years, audits find By LISA HOFFMAN Scripps Howard News Service 13-SEP-05 WASHINGTON -- An L.L. Bean briefcase and raincoat. Professional dues and charitable contributions. A trip to Germany. Video equipment. A 2002 Ford Crown Victoria. According to two federal audits, those are just some of the items that Louisiana state emergency officials improperly bought with some of the $228 million in U.S. disaster funds they received in recent years. The audits also found that the Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness ignored federal rules for overseeing contractors, doling out more than...

A woman in Wyandotte claimed to be a hurricane evacuee in need of help, but had actually been living and working in Michigan for at least a year.

Katrina Evacuee Imposters Arrested POSTED: 7:17 pm CDT September 15, 2005 UPDATED: 7:38 pm CDT September 15, 2005 BEXAR COUNTY, Texas -- Some local criminals looking to take advantage of Hurricane Katrina are abusing the Red Cross, Good Will and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, authorities said. At least two people have been arrested for posing as storm evacuees in order to receive money and other emergency handouts. "They recognized people who have been in the Bexar County Jail before and that's how we arrested a couple of them," said Deputy Chief Henry Martinez, of the Bexar County Sheriff's office....

BREAKING NEWS (Updated 5:15 p.m.): MOULTON - Moulton Mayor Kathleen Koranek Prasek was arrested Friday morning on two misdemeanor warrants accusing her of taking a 12-year-old girl to Wal-mart and falsely claiming the girl was a Hurricane Katrina evacuee. The 51-year-old Moulton woman is charged with theft, a Class B misdemeanor, and perjury, a Class A misdemeanor. She was released from the Lavaca County Jail after posting bail totaling $2,000. The charge of theft carries a punishment range up to 180 days and up to a $2,000 fine. The perjury charge carries a punishment range up to one year and...

OPINION Fraud, waste are costs of compassion Peter A. Brown COMMENTARY September 16, 2005 Katrina's cleanup will be both outrageously expensive and so loosely managed that some people and companies will make out like bandits. That is the price we pay for being a compassionate society. It is the unfortunate byproduct of acting humanely. Let's be clear. Maximum efficiency, which includes extensive financial safeguards, is incompatible with rebuilding the Gulf Coast while underwriting the daily existence of Katrina's victims. After all, we are talking about both the biggest natural disaster -- and the largest government-run rebuilding -- in U.S. history....

Crackdown on relief fraud brings more arrests At least 25 have been accused of trying to obtain money that wasn't meant for them By ROSANNA RUIZ Copyright 2005 Houston Chronicle At least 25 people have been arrested and accused of attempting to "double dip" and fraudulently receive Hurricane Katrina relief funds from the American Red Cross, Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt announced Friday. The arrests were made Thursday and Friday at St. Agnes Baptist Church, where the Red Cross has been distributing checks and debit cards meant for evacuees, Hurtt said. As of Friday night, misdemeanor and felony charges were...