District of Columbia v. Razjooyan (Federal Civil RICO Suit Strips Landlords of Building Control)
The U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia granted a preliminary injunction in District of Columbia v. Razjooyan (No. 1:26-cv-01210), ordering landlords Ali 'Sam' Razjooyan and Houri Razjooyan to install independent, licensed professional management at every building they still control and to fix nearly 200 outstanding housing code violations across five properties within 21 days. The order escalates a civil RICO, consumer-protection, and false-claims case D.C. Attorney General Brian L. Schwalb's office filed against the family over an alleged decade-long scheme spanning more than 70 mostly rent-controlled apartment buildings.
Why it matters
Shows regulators pairing racketeering and false-claims theories, which carry personal liability for the individuals controlling ownership entities, with a receivership-style operational takeover that displaces an owner from day-to-day control before final judgment. Owners and lenders in subsidized or rent-controlled multifamily housing should treat habitability certifications made to housing agencies and lenders as carrying meaningful fraud exposure, not just program-compliance risk.
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