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What prosecutors allege
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, Maliktra Derenorcourt and Philippe Oliver Gadie, along with others, allegedly pursued a large number of residential leases in Washington, D.C., and surrounding areas from at least November 2023 through the time of the indictment.
How the alleged apartment scheme worked
Prosecutors allege that rental applications used stolen or fabricated Social Security numbers, so-called Credit Privacy Numbers, and fabricated employment letters. The leases allegedly enabled participants to live in some apartments or sell access to other people for a fraction of the lease value. Rent and bills allegedly went unpaid.
The DOJ says nearly all apartments fraudulently leased in the alleged scheme led to eviction proceedings for nonpayment. It says applications were submitted in batches to take advantage of the lengthy eviction process in D.C. The announcement describes proceedings as lasting multiple months and sometimes a year or longer; that is the government’s account of the alleged scheme’s context, not a claim about the duration of every D.C. eviction case.
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How money allegedly moved
Prosecutors also allege participants used Bitcoin and Cash App accounts opened under stolen or fabricated identities to transfer money among themselves. The DOJ says Gadie allegedly used at least one victim’s name, Social Security number, and date of birth to open a Cash App account that conducted hundreds of transactions in that victim’s name. The investigation into the accounts is ongoing.
What is known about the defendants and case
The DOJ identifies Derenorcourt and Gadie as D.C. residents. It also alleges that Derenorcourt posed as female identity-theft victims and that search warrants at Derenorcourt’s apartment recovered luxury fashion items. The announcement identifies Gadie as a citizen of Côte d’Ivoire who overstayed a nonimmigrant visa. These are assertions in the government’s announcement, not findings by a court.
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The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia’s public case listing identifies the prosecution as USA v. Gadie, case 26-cr-142, and records an “Order Unsealing Upon Arrest” filed October 1, 2026. That docket entry confirms the procedural record and timing; it does not establish that the allegations are true.
Loss estimate and what remains unresolved
The U.S. Attorney’s Office estimates losses to the apartment complexes involved at “hundreds of thousands of dollars.” It says the investigation into the scheme’s extent and scope is ongoing, so the figure is preliminary rather than a final loss calculation. The announcement does not provide a precise apartment count, victim count, or final total.
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U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro described the alleged conduct as “a calculated fraud operation that weaponized stolen identities, exploited the eviction system, and inflicted significant financial harm across the District,” in the DOJ announcement dated October 2, 2026. That statement reflects the government’s characterization of its case.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Charges are allegations, not convictions
The defendants were charged in a seven-count superseding indictment. An indictment is not proof of guilt: the DOJ states that both defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court.
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