DEFENDANTS PLEAD GUILTY TO RICO, CONSPIRACY CHARGES

Tuesday, January 13, 2026

Defendants Defrauded State of Georgia through Fake Contracts

Decatur, Ga.- DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announces the convictions by guilty pleas of four defendants accused of defrauding the State of Georgia out of nearly $200,000 through two contract schemes.

On Monday, January 12, 2026, Defendant Corey Alston, 48, entered a negotiated guilty plea to Violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act in connection with deceiving the Georgia Department of Community Affairs (DCA).

DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Courtney L. Johnson, who presided over the hearing and accepted Defendant Alston's guilty plea, sentenced him to 20 years to serve 3 in custody. As special conditions of his sentence, Alston may not seek employment with any government agency or work in any position that would give him access to public funds. Alston must also pay $30,000 in restitution to the state. Defendant Alston will serve his time concurrently with a federal prison sentence in an unrelated case.

Defendant Quinton Tate, 44, entered a negotiated guilty plea to one count of Conspiracy to Defraud the State. Judge Johnson accepted Tate's plea and sentenced him to 5 years on probation, a fine of $5,000 and 250 hours of community service. Special conditions of his sentence include no employment with any government entity, no contracting with any government entity, no involvement in any U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)-related programs, and no responsibility for any public funds. Tate will receive treatment under the First Offender Act if he successfully completes the terms of his sentence.

Alston and Tate were the last of four co-conspirators to plead guilty in the DeKalb County case. The other defendants were Toyoa Andrews, 52, and Shawn Williams, 62.

According to the investigation, Defendant Williams was the Director of DCA's Housing Assistance Division (HAD) from 2017 to 2019. HAD was responsible for helping Georgians find safe, affordable housing. Defendant Andrews, who is Williams's cousin, also worked at DCA and Williams was her supervisor.

Williams and Andrews conspired to defraud DCA by approving a contract for cleaning services at a DCA satellite office with a company owned by Andrews. The DCA paid more than $64,000 to the cleaning company from 2017 to 2019, even though the office already had cleaning services provided by the building's landlord.

In 2019, Defendant Alston learned the DCA was looking for a vendor to develop an online tool for the agency. When the state rejected his company's request to be an authorized vendor, Defendants Alston, Andrews, and Tate agreed to use Tate's company instead.

Defendant Andrews then submitted invoices from Tate's company for the online product totaling $120,000. DCA leadership paid the invoices after Defendant Andrews and Defendant Williams told them the web service was completed and in use, though the online tool was never created.

On December 18, 2025, Defendant Shawn Williams entered a negotiated guilty plea to one count of Violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Judge Johnson accepted Williams's plea and sentenced her to 15 years of probation, 400 hours of community service, and $104,170 in restitution. Special conditions of her sentence include that she must not seek employment with any government agency or any other position that would give her access to public funds.

The same day Defendant Toyao Andrews entered a non-negotiated guilty plea to one count of Violation of the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act. Judge Johnson accepted her plea and sentenced Andrews to 20 years to serve 2 in custody, with the custodial portion suspended upon payment of $50,000 in restitution, 500 hours of community service and satisfaction of the special conditions, which include not seeking employment with any government agency or any other position that would give her access to public funds. Defendant Andrews was also sentenced to pay a $10,000 fine.

The case, assigned to the Anti-Corruption Unit, was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Aldous McCrory, with assistance from District Attorney Investigator Joshua Duke and former District Attorney Investigator Allen Russell. The Office of the Inspector General led the initial investigation.