Trans founder of defunct DC LGBTQ non-profit arrested on charges of fraud, money laundering after fleeing the country

The trans-identified male founder of former Washington, DC-based LGBTQ+ non-profit Casa Ruby has been arrested and hit with a slew of charges following allegations that the founder took a cut of federal assistance funds destined for the business and deposited the money in private Central American bank accounts for personal use.

Ruby Corado, 53, was taken into custody on March 5 and subsequently charged with bank fraud, wire fraud, laundering of monetary instruments, monetary transactions in criminally derived proceeds, and failure to file a report of foreign bank account.

According to the Department of Justice, Corado received over $1.3 million from the Paycheck Protection Program and Economic Injury Disaster Loan program under the assumption that the money would be used to pay for employees' salaries and other business-related expenses at Casa Ruby, which provided housing and support for members of the LGBTQ+ community.

Instead, it has been alleged that Corado diverted more than $150,000 to private bank accounts in El Salvador, accounts which Corado then hid from the Internal Revenue Service. 

It wasn't until 2022 that news of the "financial irregularities" at Casa Ruby was made public. It turned out that employees were no longer being paid on time, transitional housing was shut down, and multiple properties were on the verge of evicting tenants after the non-profit failed to pay rent.

Casa Ruby ceased operations in July of that year, at which point Corado home was sold and the founder fled to El Salvador. 

As NBC4 reports, a complaint alleging Corado had made off with $400,000 in funds meant for Casa Ruby was filed by the Washington, DC Attorney General's Office in November 2022, however, Corado denied those claims, suggesting the founder was being targeted for criticizing Mayor Muriel Bowser's administration.

Corado recently returned to the United States, and was apprehended by police at a hotel in Laurel, Maryland. 

If found guilty, Corado could face a maximum of 30 years in prison for bank fraud, as well as 20 apiece for wire fraud and money laundering.

Former DC Attorney General Karl A. Racine wrote in August of 2022 that his office would be taking action against Casa Ruby, with Racine writing that the organization showed "clear patterns of mismanagement[;] poor oversight of programs & finances[; and] improper use of District grants & charitable donations."

According to The Blaze, Racine’s initial motion stated that Corado began taking money from the organization for personal use by 2021 at the latest, and that more than $60,000 was used to pay Corado’s credit bills as well as meals and transportation in El Salvador.

Racine's motion also stated that the DC Department of Human Services had "authorized the use of $500,000 in Casa Ruby's funds to establish youth housing in El Salvador," but "no Board minutes or any other documentation indicate the Board approved this expense."