According to charging documents, a former City of Houston Public Works employee was arrested for allegedly taking bribes and funneling money through several businesses for nearly 10 months.Patrece Lee is facing four charges of bribery and abuse of official capacity greater than $300,000.
This arrest comes after the City of Houston hired several emergency contractors to deal with multiple water main breaks last year. According to court records, Lee reportedly used COH funds, water, and waterline repair services by recommending and requiring them to pay the bill from Lu's Construction. Charging documents say that the company belongs to her brother.
Randi Macchi, the public works chief operating officer, said more checks and balances need to be implemented to prevent this from happening in the future. He suggested more leg work to ensure businesses aren't being run out of apartments, which was the case for the shell company Lee's brother is accused of running.
Of the millions of dollars stolen, $750,000 was pocketed between the seven people. The full shopping list isn't being released because it will be used as evidence in an upcoming trial, but the DA says multiple new cars were purchased recently.