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By Samuel Lopez, USA Herald

[SACRAMENTO, CA] – In the realm of California’s rental market, landlords often wield considerable power over their tenants, often exploiting vulnerabilities with impunity.

Coincidentally, today, marks a chilling anniversary in Sacramento's legal history. In February 2020, Raghvendra "Raj" Singh, a Sacramento slumlord, who for years exploited the system, made life miserable for neighbors, tenants, code enforcement officers and anyone else who crossed him, was sentenced to 12 years in prison for 16 felony counts of fraud, forgery, and conspiracy.

While Singh remains incarcerated at the California State Prison, Sacramento (CSP Sacramento-New Folsom), his case continues to cast a long shadow, exposing systemic failures that leave vulnerable tenants at the mercy of unscrupulous landlords. Singh's story serves as a stark warning – a "Code Red" for long overdue housing justice that demands immediate action.

Singh’s abuse extended beyond financial fraud and forgery, and entered the realm of legal manipulation. Others who had been sued by Singh claim he lied about having them served, which lead to judgments against them by default.

Singh’s case, while extreme, underscores a much larger systemic issue: the abuse of tenants by unethical landlords, and the lack of oversight by State & Federal Subsidized Housing Programs that contract with these landlords.

This investigative report takes a hard look at the legal and financial liabilities that landlords like Singh face—and those they don't—and advocates for much-needed reforms.

Singh’s actions spanned years, left unchecked and included schemes to avoid paying penalties to the city of Elk Grove by fraudulently transferring properties to fictitious owners and filing falsified court documents, including Request for Fee Waivers so that he could file bogus lawsuits against those he targeted without paying the court’s fee for doing so, this despite the significant wealth he had at the time.

But Singh’s criminal behavior wasn't limited to financial fraud—he also reportedly engaged in abusive tactics towards his tenants and his neighbors, which culminated into criminal behavior. Singh's history of harassment, frivolous lawsuits, and illegal practices illustrates how unchecked landlords can exploit their tenants and the system.

Singh’s actions bring attention to another serious issue: the lack of proper enforcement and regulation in the rental housing market, particularly for landlords of multi-unit properties. These landlords can often wield an imbalance of power over their tenants, creating an environment ripe for abuse.

But the situation doesn’t end there. The lack of oversight extends to housing programs like SHRA (Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency – colloquially referred to as Section 8) who serves the community in which Singh operated, which are meant to protect vulnerable tenants but often fall short when fraud and negligence occur.

A core aspect of the issue of landlord accountability is the question of insurance liability. If, for example, a tenant is defrauded, financially harmed, assaulted or injured on a property or by their landlord, does the landlord’s insurance cover such incidents?

While the landlord may have insurance that covers property damage or accidental injuries, many policies explicitly exclude coverage for the type of criminal activities that Singh was engaged in, or for any intentional acts of violence, such as physical assaults committed by the landlord or property owners.

The situation becomes even more multifarious when the landlord, property owner, or their corporations and LLCs are directly involved in the fraudulent and criminal activities. In Singh's case, after his conviction, his assets — personal properties and corporate entities—were targeted by the D.A. and forfeited to compensate those harmed by him.

At the time, Sacramento County Deputy District Attorney Leslie Kolb, now retired, was part of the community prosecution unit that handles quality-of-life crimes. She decided to take on the Singh case after hearing from individuals who had troubling encounters with him.

"I just kept hearing from all our community partners about this 'Raj Singh' guy and how he was doing all of these really bad things," she said.

"And I can't imagine retiring on a better note than sending Mr. Singh to prison for 12 years," she said with a smile. "Justice has been done."

Landlords Like Singh Are Exploiting Government Housing Assistance Programs: Illicit activities, like those Singh was involved in, also extend into government housing programs such as the Sacramento Housing & Redevelopment Agency (SHRA), when participating landlords financially and physically abuse or harass tenants who are also enrolled in the program, and when SHRA ignores, neglects to investigate, or take appropriate action to address such abuses.

I recently searched publicly available court records in the Sacramento area, and found a troubling complaint filed by a U.S. veteran, living in Elk Grove.

This veteran is currently suing his former landlord in small claims court for what he alleges, is unscrupulous and “bad-faith conduct.” The complaint indicates that the landlord and veteran were both participating in a local government subsidized-assisted housing program.

According to the complaint, the landlord owes him money for the “initial security deposit ($700) and pet ($500) deposit for a total of $1,200. Additionally, requested is double the amount of this initial deposit which was withheld in bad faith, totaling $3,600.”

The complaint further alleges that “The landlord has refused to return any amount of security and/or pet deposit nor has the landlord produced any receipts of repairs to establish reasons to withhold deposit(s).”

While this veteran-tenant awaits his trial in the next few weeks, court records reveal that the landlord he is suing, is simultaneously involved in several other civil complaints and criminal proceedings initiated against him by his former tenants, and the district attorney’s office, including a complaint by a former participating SHRA tenant, that alleges similar and even worse conduct perpetrated against them.

In one case, the former SHRA tenant, alleges that their pleas to SHRA for assistance in addressing this landlord’s misconduct and habitability issues, including an instance where the landlord physically assaulted the tenant causing great bodily injury, were ignored.

Landlords participating in such programs are supposed to maintain a minimum standard of living for tenants, but some—like Singh, and the one being sued by the veteran—take advantage of the system by failing to meet those standards while continuing to collect government subsidized payments.

Singh had a history of renting substandard rental units, fraudulently withholding tenant deposits, filing false documents, and misrepresenting his financial status to gain access to government assistance, and fee waivers of court fees. These cases highlight how landlords can exploit the very programs meant to protect tenants.

The abuse of SHRA and other government housing assistance programs by landlords, requires immediate attention. Not only do these programs serve vulnerable populations, but the public funds that support them must be protected from exploitation by unscrupulous landlords. Legislative action is needed to close the loopholes that allow such abuses to continue unchecked.

The Singh case and others like it, serve as example of a broader, systemic issue in California’s rental housing market. The lack of oversight in the rental industry, coupled with weak insurance policies and limited accountability for landlords, property owners and their corporations, has created an environment where tenants are vulnerable to exploitation and abuse. Reform is necessary to protect tenants and ensure that landlords who engage in fraudulent, violent, or illegal activities are held accountable.

5-years after the conviction of slumlord, Raghvendra "Raj" Singh, the continued abuses of government subsidized housing programs, continues by unethical landlords, which underscores the need for greater transparency in landlord transactions and increased accountability for property owners.

Additionally, entities like SHRA must fulfill their responsibilities to ensure that their programs, along with other government-assisted housing initiatives, are not exploited by landlords, to the detriment of the individuals these programs are meant to protect.

If we are to create a more just and accountable rental housing market, it is critical that lawmakers step in to implement reforms that address the issues of landlord violence, fraud, and systemic abuse. Only then can we ensure that tenants are truly protected from those who exploit their power.

Fact-Check Section:

• Sacramento County District Attorney's Office

• Sacramento Housing & Redevelopment Agency (SHRA)

• Link to CBS News reporting regarding Singh’s conviction

For more information on reporting landlord abuse, you can contact the Sacramento District Attorney’s Community Prosecution Unit.