Herndon Man Admits Stealing From Homeowners Associations

A Herndon man who helped manage 400 homeowners associations in Northern Virginia admitted yesterday that he stole about $3 million from those associations over four years and failed to pay more than $775,000 in income taxes during that period.

Jeffrey S. Koger, 39, was the chief financial officer of Koger Management Group of Fairfax, which collected dues from various homeowners and was supposed to distribute those funds into the appropriate homeowners association accounts.

Instead, according to court documents filed in federal court in Alexandria, Koger spent more than $730,000 of the homeowners' money on a restaurant called Jordan's 8 in Washington and about $475,000 to remodel his house in Herndon and a health club in Annandale and make down payments on a new Chevrolet Corvette and a house in New Mexico. He also used $83,000 to make other investments.

Koger, who was charged yesterday, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema to one count each of wire fraud and tax evasion. Federal guidelines suggest a possible term of six to eight years in prison, though Brinkema may go above or below those terms at sentencing Feb. 6.

Fairfax City police launched an investigation into the case last year, and Koger Management was placed under Fairfax County Circuit Court supervision then. Robert A. Koger, the founder of the company and Jeffrey Koger's father, said he was estranged from his son, who left the company in late 2006. Robert Koger said last year that his company intended to repay the homeowners associations, which have about 70,000 members.

In his plea agreement, Jeffrey Koger agreed to make full restitution to the IRS for the unpaid taxes and to the various homeowners associations, though the final dollar amount has not been determined.

While investigators were closing in on Koger in February, authorities say, he went on a bizarre shooting spree that ended in a Springfield shootout with Fairfax and Virginia State Police officers, during which he wounded three people and then was shot in the stomach. His trial on charges of attempted capital murder of a police officer is set for February, and his lawyers have filed notice that he will pursue an insanity defense.

Koger's lawyer, Peter D. Greenspun, declined to comment on Koger's plea yesterday.

In March, before Koger admitted any embezzlement, his case prompted the Virginia General Assembly to pass laws increasing the accountability of companies that manage finances for homeowners associations. More than 4,000 such associations are registered in Virginia, according to the state Department of Professional and Occupational Regulation, and some of the largest in the country are located in Northern Virginia.