A Toronto public housing employee has been fired amid an investigation into claims that officials took bribes from residents looking to jump the wait list for affordable housing.
The Toronto Community Housing Corp. confirmed an employee was fired in June for "not fulfilling the duties of their job" the Toronto Star reported Thursday.
Officials would not confirm whether the official was fired as a result of the fraud allegations, the newspaper reported.
"Toronto Community Housing is currently investigating allegations of fraud with respect to access to subsidized rental units," spokesperson Frank Clarke said in a statement released Wednesday.
"The investigation centres on the activities of two employees," Clarke said in the release.
The community housing agency says it is taking the accusations seriously and is investigating, but declined to comment further.
The alleged bribes first surfaced because of a complaint from tenant Abderra Boukhalfa, 52.
Boukhalfa, who lives near Jane Street and St. Clair Avenue West, complained about waiting more than a decade for a two-bedroom subsidized apartment while other prospective tenants jumped the queue.
He claimed other tenants said housing officials were paid $3,000 to $6,000 to process affordable housing applications faster.
Police were notified of the complaint two months ago, but after an initial investigation, no criminal activity was found.
Councillor Frances Nunziata (Ward 11, York South-Weston) said she was informed of the complaint earlier this year.
"I originally spoke to the tenant in March, which was a complaint that he wanted to be transferred to a bigger unit and he was told -- he had been waiting since 1996 -- that there was a huge waiting list," Nunziata told CTV News on Wednesday.
The city's department of public housing has more than 164,000 tenants in more than 350 buildings across Toronto.
There are approximately 75,000 people on waiting lists for affordable housing in the city.
