A Mount Vernon man is accused of stealing thousands of dollars through a scheme to wrongly obtain COVID-era rental assistance money, according to court documents.

Prosecutors charged the suspect, 48-year-old Luke T. Johnson, in Island County Superior Court June 10 with theft in the first degree. Under the standard sentencing range, he could face from two to six months in jail if convicted of the charges.

A deputy with the Island County Sheriff’s Office explained in his report on the case that the county received an influx of federal dollars for housing support during the pandemic. Island County Human Services released the money to several nonprofits, which worked directly with landlords and tenants to give out the money for rental assistance.

In the summer of 2021, officials from Human Services and the Opportunity Council, a regional nonprofit that helps low-income people, noticed repeated applications from Johnson, who claimed to be a landlord of different properties. Ten of the applications were deemed to be fraudulent, but money was paid out to three applications. Nearly $40,000 was obtained “via fraud and deception,” the deputy wrote.

The deputy followed up on the case this year and contacted the real owner of the property Johnson claimed to own, but found that he had no knowledge of Johnson or any rental assistance, the report states. A company named Alternative Energy Now LLC received $12,600 in rental assistance for the property. The deputy traced the company’s bank account and found that Johnson is the primary authorized user, the report states.

The deputy was unable to locate Johnson, who is currently homeless, the report states. Prosecutors attempted to send him a summons to appear in court on June 30.