US EditionDC sues landlords with law used in organized crime to stop mistreatment of low-income tenants
The lawsuit targets a decade-long fraud by the Razjooyan family involving 70 buildings and $16 million in subsidy fraud, worsening D.C.’s affordable housing shortage.
- On Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb filed a civil lawsuit seeking to dismantle an alleged landlord fraud scheme, saying, `Today, we’re dismantling the Razjooyan slumlord empire.`
- According to the lawsuit, the operation relied on a Ponzi‑style scheme using fake financials and false renovation promises to secure loans, while shell LLCs, unlicensed managers, and straw purchasers concealed ownership and diverted funds to pay debts and buy properties.
- Legal aid attorneys describe affected tenants living amid infestations, gas leaks, mold, flooding, and some without heat, as the lawsuit documents properties across the District with thousands of violations.
- The lawsuit seeks restitution for impacted tenants and aims to bar the family from doing business in the District, where many properties are condemned, reducing available housing and involving over $16 million defrauded from agencies.
- The defendants counter that the allegations belong in court, while Schwalb says the Razjooyan family spent the past decade acquiring more than 70 buildings, mostly in Wards 7 and 8, and officials call the RICO use novel.
12 Articles
12 Articles
BlackPressUSA
The Washington InformerSchwalb Targets Alleged Slumlord Network in First-of-Its-Kind Racketeering Lawsuit
By Stacy M. Brown | The Washington Informer The District of Columbia filed a sweeping civil racketeering lawsuit Thursday seeking to dismantle what Attorney General Brian Schwalb described as a decade-long real estate fraud enterprise that left hundreds of tenants living in hazardous conditions while siphoning tens of millions of dollars from lenders and city housing programs. “Today, we’re dismantling the Razjooyan slumlord empire,” Schwalb sai…
Associated Press News
DC sues landlords with law used in organized crime to stop mistreatment of low-income tenants
Washington, D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb has filed a lawsuit using a law originally crafted to prosecute organized crime to push a landlord accused of providing unsuitable living conditions to his renters out of business.
DC Attorney General files lawsuit to dismantle alleged real estate fraud scheme
The D.C. Attorney General has filed a civil lawsuit aimed at shutting down what officials describe as a sprawling real‑estate fraud scheme that exploits tenants, lenders and District agencies while worsening the city’s affordable‑housing crisis.
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