ST. LOUIS, Mo. — A former St. Louis building inspector who funneled city repair money to companies tied to his own family was sentenced Tuesday in federal court to six years in prison.
Popoola, who lost his city job over the scheme, was also ordered to pay back about $1.6 million he took from programs meant to fix up rundown homes and buildings around the city. The case was investigated by the FBI and prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in St. Louis, with Assistant U.S. Attorney Hal Goldsmith handling it in court.
Popoola worked as a city building inspector and had a big hand in running two rehab efforts. One spent federal pandemic relief money on privately owned properties, while the other used bond money to work on homes held by the city’s land bank.
In his job, Popoola picked which buildings got work, decided what repairs were needed, judged contractor bids, handed out contracts, inspected finished jobs and signed off on payments. Prosecutors said he steered dozens of contracts to two companies set up by relatives and then certified work that was never done.
Prosecutors said the money paid his mortgage, bought and repaired cars, and covered casino gambling, travel and his wedding in Hawaii. Goldsmith argued the crime called for real prison time because it damaged public trust in city government. The defense had asked for two years.
Popoola admitted to three counts of wire fraud in June. He was not taken into custody after the hearing and will stay on an ankle monitor until he reports to prison.
Payments to contractors were frozen during the investigation, which slowed other stabilization work in the city, including repairs to properties hit by the May 2025 tornado. Because the money came from pandemic relief funds, the city may still have to repay the federal government.
So far Popoola has not repaid any of the money. Goldsmith said federal prosecutors and the U.S. Probation Office will work to track down his assets, and could take part of his pay if he finds work after his release.
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