Teacher accused of embezzling from graphic arts club in California

FROM http://www.pe.com/ -

An Elsinore High School teacher, accused of misappropriating about $500 from a school graphic arts club he advised, pleaded not guilty Thursday to misdemeanor embezzlement.

Scott Bammes, 49, has been on paid administrative leave from his job at the Wildomar school since spring because of the investigation, Lake Elsinore Unified School District spokesman Mark Dennis said. Bammes was charged last month, court records show.

District officials in December reported a possible embezzlement from the Tiger Graphix program after an audit suggested several thousand dollars were unaccounted for, according to a Riverside County Sheriff's Department investigator's statement in support of an arrest warrant.

Defense attorney Matthew Singer said Bammes has provided documentation to authorities showing that much of the money the district thought was missing had been used for legitimate expenses.

Tiger Graphix is a vocational program in which students learn graphic arts and business skills, Dennis said. Students take orders for pay, primarily for silk-screening of items such as T-shirts and hats. The money the class brings in belongs to the district, Dennis said. About 150 students participate in the program each year.

Concerns were raised after Bammes asked a Tiger Graphix customer to make a check payable to him instead of Elsinore High School, the investigator's statement said. In December, Bammes tried to give a district official a check for about $500, saying "he had done some wrong things," the statement said. In April, he tried to give the high school bookkeeper a $500 check, saying he borrowed money and wanted to pay it back, the statement said. Neither check was accepted.