Tax records show millions of dollars have poured into the non-profit, which was allegedly at the center of a criminal enterprise involving Eugene “Big U” Henley, Jr. Investigative Reporter Eric Leonard reports for the NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on Wednesday, March 19, 2025.
Government and tax records show millions of dollars in gang intervention funds have poured into a pair of non-profits operated by an alleged gang leader of the Rollin' 60s Crips, who prosecutors announced Wednesday was suspected of diverting thousands of dollars for his personal use.
Eugene "Big U" Henley, Jr., 58, of the South LA community of Hyde Park, was arrested Wednesday, after a criminal complaint was unsealed that accused him of leading a, "mafia-like," criminal organization, called the, "Big U Enterprise," that prosecutors said benefited from Henley's association with the gang.
The complaint alleged that for years Henley has siphoned away for his personal use intervention funds the City of Los Angeles paid to a pair of his co-mingled non-profit organizations, the Ex-Offender Fellowship Network, which did business as, Developing Options.
Ex-Offender Fellowship is registered as a non-profit with the IRS, and Developing Options is registered as a non-profit with the state of California, and the City of LA listed both names in its contracts with Henley.
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The California Franchise Tax Board, the state's tax collector, listed Developing Options' corporate status as, 'suspended,' as of April, 2024, but public records did not cite a reason.
An FTB spokesperson declined to comment on the specific suspension, but wrote that a suspended non-profit corporation loses its non-profit status, cannot conduct business, and could face fines.
How Henley’s organization received funding
The most recent contract between Henley's groups and the City of Los Angeles shows the non-profits were scheduled to receive a nearly-$800,000 in July, 2024, which would have been the final installment of a 4-year agreement that paid his organizations more than $2.2-million for intervention work.
The City issued the contract as part of its Gang Reduction and Youth Development program, or GRYD, that funds a variety of non-profit community groups that provide gang intervention services.
City records also reveal Henley’s groups began receiving the city’s gang intervention funding as far back as 2011, and according to records from the LA City Controller's office, Henley's groups received about $500,000 a year between 2018 and 2021.
The City funding increased in 2023, following then-Mayor Eric Garcetti's efforts to increase funding for intervention work, after the rise in violent crimes that followed the COVID-19 pandemic.
The federal tax records for the Ex-offender Fellowship show it received other private donations during that time, with its total revenue rising from around $500,000 for several years to nearly $800,000 in 2022, then revenue reached nearly $2 million in 2023.
The source of the private donations was not included on the public tax return.
Where was the money going?
The tax returns show while Henley was paid $95,000 as president and director, most revenue in 2023 compensated unnamed top staff members, including corporate officers, directors and trustees.
According to the criminal complaint made public Wednesday, federal prosecutors say they believe Henley diverted much of that money to his personal bank accounts, including pocketing tens of thousands of dollars in donations intended for the group, including a $20,000 contribution from an NBA All-star.
Federal prosecutors also alleged that Henley didn’t file accurate tax returns, failed to pay tax on undeclared income, and engaged in a scheme to defraud a bank so he could qualify for a home loan.
How is the LA city government reacting?
The mayor's office didn't answer NBC Los Angeles’ specific questions about the nonprofit's status, but said the city has “strict oversight in place.”
"The City has zero tolerance for malfeasance and over the past two years increased oversight on GRYD programs," a spokesperson emailed.
"The City has strict oversight in place, however the complaint alleges a sophisticated effort to thwart oversight for many avenues of funding including the City," Bass' office said.
"There are more than 20 organizations that serve as GRYD service providers and hundreds of people who provide prevention and intervention services throughout the City of L.A. This alleged act does not reflect the work of the GRYD program overall, which has helped lead to a dramatic decrease in gang-related violence citywide two years in a row."
NBC LA asked the Mayor's office for documentation of, "Desk Compliance Assessments," and records of other oversight of Henley's and other GRYD providers' funding.
