SAN FRANCISCO—On Thursday, January 25, the SF District Attorney’s Office disclosed that multiple felony charges were filed against Stanley Ellicott, 38, of Oakland, a manager in the City’s Department of Human Resources, on numerous felony charges for his role in a scheme to misappropriate grant funds awarded through the City’s Community Challenge Grant Program.
A new criminal complaint filed by the SFDA’s Office alleges that over a four-year period from May 2017 to July 2021, Ellicott aided and abetted Lanita Henriquez in the misappropriation of public money for her own use and the use of others in violation of Penal Code section 424.
The complaint further charges Ellicott with six violations of Government Code section 1090(b), aiding and abetting Henriquez’s financial conflict of interest in six Community Challenge Grant contracts that she entered in to on behalf of the city of San Francisco with entities belonging to and controlled by Rudolph Dwayne Jones. It is alleged that Ellicott committed felony receipt of stolen property in violation of Penal Code section 496(a). There is no evidence at this time that Ellicott’s alleged criminal activity related to his work in the City’s Department of Human Resources.
The charges are related to a 59-count complaint filed in August 2023 against Henriquez, the former director of the City’s Community Challenge Grant Program, and Jones, the founder and president of RDJ Enterprises and a former City employee. Henriquez and Jones were charged with the misappropriation of government funds, multiple counts of bribery, and numerous counts of financial conflict of interest.
An affidavit filed with the Court in support of Ellicott’s arrest explains a scheme in which Henriquez entered into contracts on behalf of the City and County of San Francisco with entities controlled by Jones totaling more than $1.4 million. During the same time period, and while Ellicott was employed by the city of San Francisco, Jones’s company, RDJ Enterprises, paid Ellicott a total of $269,876.24. Ellicott made payments back to Henriquez using Venmo and PayPal totaling $65,650.26.
In 2023, an affidavit was filed in court supporting the arrests of Henriquez and Jones and alleged that leading up to and during the time period in which Jones’s companies had contracts with the city of San Francisco through the Community Challenge Grant program, Henriquez received nine checks totaling $32,942 from entities controlled by Jones.
In that same time fame, family members and close associates of Henriquez received 48 checks from entities controlled by Jones totaling $156,821.
The affidavit in support of Ellicott’s arrest alleges emails and documents located in Jones’s office pursuant to a search warrant last year show that Ellicott did website, technical, and graphic design work for the grants, but Jones and Henriquez concealed his involvement and billed his work as having been done by an RDJ employee. The grant work was unrelated to Ellicott’s City job in the Human Resources Department. He did not have authorization from the city to perform outside work.
It alleges in February, March, and April 2019, Ellicott sold thousands of dollars of “BRAND NEW” and “SEALED IN THE BOX” cameras and electronic equipment on eBay that had been purchased using Community Challenge Grant money.
According to the affidavit, in February and March 2019, Jones’s company submitted invoices to Henriquez – which she approved and recommended for payment – related to a “resiliency” grant. The purpose of the grant was to purchase earthquake supplies for neighborhood groups and provide them education and outreach. These invoices included over $14,000 worth of items purchased at Best Buy listed as “Eureka Valley and Inner Sunset Supplies” and “Bayview and Excelsior Supplies.”
Items purchased were three Oculus virtual reality headsets, four Rylo Action cameras, an HDTV projector, a Nikon DSLR camera worth nearly $2,000, four Go Pro cameras, three mini-instant cameras, six Microsoft tablets, and four OSMO pocket cameras with expansion kits.
Ellicott allegedly sold most of these items on eBay, and that Henriquez sold two of the Microsoft tablets on eBay. The affidavit alleges that Jones submitted false invoices for more than $100,000 worth of emergency equipment for neighborhood groups that he did not actually purchase. Henriquez recommended the city of San Francisco pay Jones for the fake purchases.
Arraignment and future court dates for the defendant will be scheduled by the San Francisco Superior Court. All charges are a result of an on-going investigation by the San Francisco District Attorney’s Office Public Integrity Task Force. Anyone with details is asked to call the Public Integrity Task Force tip line at 628-652-4444.
