Federal prosecutors say 37-year-old Raquel Garcia, of Victoria, bilked the government for almost $300,000 from 1998 through last July.
She's making an initial appearance Monday before a federal magistrate judge.
According to the indictment unsealed Monday, Garcia hid the fact she had a husband living with her and his income to illegally collect almost $175,000 in Housing and Urban Development Department rent subsidies. She's also accused of fraudulently receiving supplemental Social Security income for her son.
She was housing commissioner from 2006 to 2010, appointed twice by Victoria's mayor. She could get up to 10 years in prison if convicted.
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