Delaware Man Sentenced to a Year and a Day in Prison for Defrauding City of Philadelphia in the Purchase, Sale of Three Point Breeze Properties

PHILADELPHIA - United States Attorney Jacqueline C. Romero announced that Felton Hayman, 54, of Wilmington, Delaware, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge Mark A. Kearney to 12 months and a day in prison and three years of supervised release for defrauding the City of Philadelphia of almost $150,000. Hayman was also ordered to pay a $10,000 fine, $149,000 in restitution to the City, forfeiture of $100,000, and a $300 special assessment.

In July 2023, a federal grand jury returned an indictment against the defendant, charging him with three counts of wire fraud. Hayman pleaded guilty to all charges in April of this year.

From approximately July 2014 through approximately September 2018, Hayman devised and willfully participated in a scheme to obtain money and property from the City of Philadelphia - specifically, real estate located in and owned by the City - by means of materially false and fraudulent pretenses, representations, and promises.

The defendant used his longtime friendship with a Philadelphia city councilmember to obtain three vacant city properties at below-market prices, based on a promise that Hayman would build affordable housing on the lots. Hayman, however, never intended to develop affordable housing on any of the three sites. Instead, he planned to sell the properties as quickly as he obtained them, in order to make a profit.

Hayman's scheme largely succeeded. In late August 2018, his construction company, Hayman Construction, purchased the vacant properties located at 1200 South Bucknell Street, 2040 Titan Street, and 2046 Titan Streets for a total of $101,000.

Less than a month later, Hayman sold the Titan Street properties for approximately $115,000 apiece. Hayman also entered into a separate agreement to sell the South Bucknell Street property for $150,000, but that deal fell apart, despite Hayman's efforts to further defraud city officials about the nature of that sale.

In total, Hayman profited by at least $165,000 from his fraud, with the loss to the City of Philadelphia estimated to be $149,000.

"Felton Hayman got a steal of a deal on these lots because he promised to build affordable housing," said U.S. Attorney Romero. "But his plan all along was to flip the properties for a quick and tidy profit - he advertised them for sale before even holding title! Hayman defrauded the City and people of Philadelphia, purely out of greed, and my office and the FBI will continue to work to hold fraudsters like him accountable."

This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Mark Dubnoff.