A Houston man and a New York man have pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud after admitting they helped orchestrate a scheme that used fake tenant leases for Lenoir County properties to steal more than $187,000 in pandemic-era rental assistance. Daquan Copeland, 35, of Houston, Texas, and Esless White Sr., 51, of Jamaica, New York, entered their pleas in federal court in Wilmington.
According to WCTI12, Copeland, White and others submitted 23 fraudulent applications to the NC HOPE program between November 2020 and December 2021. The applications included fake tenant leases for multiple properties in Lenoir County, according to the same report, which allowed the men to apply for emergency rental assistance they were not entitled to receive.
How the Scheme Siphoned Pandemic Housing Funds
NC HOPE, formally the North Carolina Housing Opportunities and Prevention of Evictions program, used federal CARES Act funding to provide rental and utility assistance to households struggling during the COVID-19 pandemic, per the station's report. Investigators say Copeland and White conspired to defraud the federal government of more than $187,000, with the stolen housing funds used for personal purposes rather than reaching tenants in need.
The Kinston Police Department was among the agencies involved in the case. The case involved federal funds intended to help people in need.
Investigators Point to Broader Pattern of Pandemic Aid Fraud
The investigation into Copeland and White involved the HUD Office of Inspector General and the State Bureau of Investigation, with the Kinston Police Department and U.S. Marshals Service also assisting, per the same account from WCTI12.
Copeland and White each face up to 30 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $1 million when they are sentenced later in 2026. Their case joins a string of similar prosecutions tied to North Carolina's pandemic rental-assistance program; in a separate 2023 case, six people were indicted on allegations tied to at least 44 fraudulent North Carolina HOPE applications and more than $279,000 in disbursed funds, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
