Andy Lewis, former director of the Boerum Hill “Toxic Preschool” that closed in 2007 after parents discovered that it had no heat, exposed wires, unpainted walls and noxious fumes, will be sentenced tomorrow before Brooklyn Federal Court Judge Kiyo Matsumoto on charges of stealing more than half a million dollars in U.S. Department of Agriculture funds.
Brooklyn Eagle: The payments, made to Lewis’ Better Brooklyn Community Center, were supposed to be used, under the Child Nutrition Act, to feed low-income children. Better Brooklyn was the parent body of the “toxic preschool,” whose real name was the Brooklyn Children’s Academy Preschool.
Lewis pleaded guilty on Nov. 22, according to court documents.
According to an FBI affidavit, the scheme came to light in 2006 after state Department of Health inspectors found that the organization had spent only $18,448 for meals and snacks for the entire year of 2005; that there were no food preparation employees on site; and that Lewis had submitted vouchers even for periods when the center had been closed.
I wonder if this will help me collect the small claims court judgement I was awarded against him years ago when I unknowingly sublet some office space from Better Brooklyn Community Center when they were on Jay St. Andy Lewis bounced 2 checks to me and ultimately stole my security deposit. I know it’s small potatoes compared to what these parents have lost, but I’d really love to get my money back. I hope he rots in jail.