CINCINNATI – Federal agents arrested a Cincinnati man this weekend on charges of defrauding the government and making false statements.

 

Gary Wipperman, 57, of Cincinnati, allegedly created fictitious court documents that included forged judges’ signatures in order to obtain housing vouchers.

 

Benjamin C. Glassman, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Brad Geary, Special Agent in Charge, U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), Office of Inspector General, announced the charges, which were unsealed yesterday evening.

 

According to an affidavit filed in support of the criminal complaint, Wipperman was convicted in Greene County in 1993 of gross sexual imposition and felonious sexual penetration involving a 9 year old victim. In 1999, he was adjudged a sexual predator and required to register his residence every 90 days for life.

 

A regular data review conducted by HUD in 2018 revealed that Wipperman had registered his residence at an address that is subsidized by federal funding through HUD.

 

HUD regulations prohibit any individual who is subject to a state lifetime sex offender registration requirement from receiving assistance from HUD.

 

Follow-up investigation indicated that in 2015, Wipperman was selected from a waitlist to receive housing choice vouchers from the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority, but was denied the vouchers because of his sexual predator status.

 

Wipperman requested a review of the decision to deny him housing and HUD held an informal review hearing in February 2016.

 

Prior to that hearing date, Wipperman allegedly provided fictitious documents to HUD – some of which included forged signatures – including:

an opinion signed by a Federal Magistrate Court Judge in the Southern District of Ohio but issued by the United States Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that claimed Wipperman was entitled to “have the same rights as one never charged and given the presumption of innocence unless convicted in a new trial”;

an opinion from a Federal District Court Judge in the Southern District of Ohio that vacated Wipperman’s convictions;

an opinion from a Federal Appellate Court Judge for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that ordered Wipperman “deemed innocent of all charges”;

an opinion from a Federal Appellate Court Judge for the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals that found Wipperman “innocent until proven guilty in a court of law” and

a docket sheet from the United States Supreme Court.

“According to the complaint, Wipperman went to a hearing before HUD in February 2016 and swore under oath that both the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio and the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit had declared him innocent,” U.S. Attorney Glassman said. “He backed those claims with supposed court documents. None of it was true.”

 

In that same month, HUD granted Wipperman permission to proceed with his application for subsidized housing, based on the aforementioned documents and hearing.

 

Since April 2016 until at least February 27, 2019, Wipperman has paid a portion of his rent using housing choice vouchers.

 

Wipperman is charged with forgery of the signature of any judge (up to five years in prison), theft of government funds (up to 10 years in prison) and making false statements (up to five years in prison).

 

“One of the fundamental missions of the U. S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) is to provide decent, safe, and affordable housing. Moreover, children, who reside in these developments must not be subject to residing close to those who are ‘lifetime sex offenders,’ Special Agent in Charge Geary said. “The HUD Office of Inspector General will vigorously pursue any individual who circumvents these regulations, thus putting the safety and welfare of our community’s most vulnerable at risk. We wish to thank the U. S. Attorney’s Office, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of Veterans Affairs Police Department, and the Cincinnati Police Department for their outstanding assistance in making today’s charges possible.”

 

U.S. Attorney Glassman commended the investigation of this case by HUD OIG, and Assistant United States Attorneys Megan Gaffney and Matthew Singer, who are prosecuting the case.

 

A criminal complaint merely contains allegations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.

 

If you information about defendant Gary Wipperman, please contact the Cincinnati Police Department at 513-765-1212.

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