A former Winslow woman pleaded guilty Tuesday to embezzling thousands of dollars from a school sports team and a sports boosters’ club, while also stealing state welfare benefits.
Wendi R. Willette, also known as Wendi Thompson, 41, now of Whitefield, N.H., stood at a podium with her hands clasped behind her back and responded “guilty” when Justice Andrew Horton asked for her pleas in Kennebec County Superior Court in Augusta.
Kennebec County District Attorney Maeghan Maloney said the people involved with the sports teams told her they placed a lot of trust in Willette and felt betrayed.
“The money was to be used for the kids,” Maloney said. “Parents came together to raise money for the kids so they could have a wrestling team and a field hockey team. What shocked them the most was that she was willing to take the money from the kids.”
Under a proposed sentence agreed to by the prosecutors and defense attorney, Willette faces up to four years in prison with all but 12 to 18 months suspended and three years of probation. She remains free pending sentencing, which has been scheduled for June 22.
Her attorney, Randy Robinson, had requested a sentencing date in late June or early July because “she home-schools one of her children, and she also has some health issues she needs to address before she starts incarceration.”
Robinson told the judge that while his client disputed some of the claims made by the state, “she does not deny that there was wrongdoing,” and he believed she would likely be convicted.
Under a plea deal, Willette also will have to pay restitution of more than $60,000 to the state and $8,425 to the Winslow Wrestling Sports Boosters Club, where she was the treasurer, as well as $300 for the China Girls’ Field Hockey Team, where she was a coach.
Maloney, who pursued the thefts from the school club and team, and Assistant Attorney General Darcy Mitchell, who prosecuted Willette on the state welfare theft and forgery charges, both said Robinson could argue for less than the 18 months of jail time if all the restitution is paid before Willette starts her prison term.
After the hearing Maloney said that Willette had made a $5,000 restitution payment on Feb. 3 and that all that money will be turned over shortly to the wrestling boosters. After the hearing, Robinson said Willette was able to repay the $5,000 because she sold some items and because she saved some money by taking in a roommate.
Maloney also said that under an agreement, Willette is to pay $300 to the field hockey team by March 7.
Both Maloney and Robinson said later that Willette indicated she had a written apology, but that was not brought up during the hearing Tuesday.
Robinson told the judge that Willette’s partner expects a settlement in a lawsuit he is pursuing. If that comes through as anticipated, Robinson said the restitution would be paid in full.
Maloney said the people involved with the sports teams were contacted about Tuesday’s plea and initially did not wish to be at the hearing although one representative was there.
“I did meet personally with the victims at the fire station in Winslow,” Maloney told Horton. “I was able to get a good sense of the harm they’ve been through.”
Maloney said the victims agreed with the proposed sentence because Willette is taking responsibility for the crimes, they need the money repaid to continue the programs and she will serve jail time.
Willette had previously been indicted on three counts of theft by deception, one count of aggravated forgery and five counts of unsworn falsification in connection with the state fraud. She was also previously indicted on three charges of theft — stealing more than $10,000 from the Winslow Wrestling Booster Club between Sept. 1, 2010, and July 31, 2013, and of stealing $300 from the China Girls Field Hockey Team Sept. 1-17, 2013.
On Tuesday, one count of theft by deception was dismissed.
According to the indictments, Willette received money from food stamps and from MaineCare and the State Supplement Program between Dec. 1, 2007, and Dec. 31, 2013. In her applications, she indicated she and her two sons were the only occupants of her China Road Home and she had no income other than Social Security disability payments.
The indictment said Willette intentionally failed to disclose that her husband was living at the home and contributing financially to the household. It also said she filed a false 2011 property tax bill with the state on March 6, 2012.
In court on Tuesday, Mitchell said some of the fraud was uncovered after Willette Thompson’s then-husband, Paul Willette, learned that she was receiving state benefits.
Mitchell said the husband told officials in September 2013 that he had been living with the family in the China Road home, was steadily employed as a truck driver for a food distribution firm, that he never made less than $55,000 a year and that the money went into a joint account.
Mitchell said records show that in June 2007 the couple purchased property on China Road, built a $70,000 mobile home and two years later obtained a town permit to install a deck and a pool.
At the same time, Mitchell said, Willette regularly filled out applications for state aid saying that she and her two children lived alone, received no support from her husband and had a zero balance in her bank account.
Willette applied for and received $840 from Maine State Housing’s Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program and at one point sought assistance with paying a 2011 property tax bill which she altered to remove her husband’s name, Mitchell told the judge.
Mitchell said state benefit overpayments to Willette were calculated at $41,989 for Department of Health & Human Services assistance in the form of food stamps and MaineCare, $840 for Maine State Housing and $18,456 in Supplemental Security Income.
Showing posts with label Youth Sports embezzlement. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Youth Sports embezzlement. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 18, 2015
Sunday, February 8, 2015
Ex-Pleasanton Youth League President Accused of Embezzling
The former president of a youth baseball league in the San Francisco Bay Area has been arrested on suspicion of embezzling more than $20,000 and using some of the stolen funds to take his family on a trip to Disneyland.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports Jeremy Lee Cardera was taken into custody Thursday and held on $20,000 bail. He could face charges of embezzlement and passing a bad check, both felonies.
The 35-year-old resigned as head of the Pleasanton American Little League in December as officials began asking him about suspicious transactions in the league account.
Police say Cardera tried to repay the league by writing a personal $20,000 check, but there were insufficient funds to cover the amount.
It's not immediately known if he has a lawyer.
The San Francisco Chronicle reports Jeremy Lee Cardera was taken into custody Thursday and held on $20,000 bail. He could face charges of embezzlement and passing a bad check, both felonies.
The 35-year-old resigned as head of the Pleasanton American Little League in December as officials began asking him about suspicious transactions in the league account.
Police say Cardera tried to repay the league by writing a personal $20,000 check, but there were insufficient funds to cover the amount.
It's not immediately known if he has a lawyer.
Sunday, January 18, 2015
Sports organizations need checks and balances to prevent embezzlement
The president of Casper Youth Baseball received notices last April that the club’s utilities would be shut off immediately due to payments not being made.
Cindy Garvin checked the organization’s bank account and realized about $50,000 was missing.
“It was one of those gut-wrenching things, where you just go, ‘Oh my God, this can’t be real. Please be wrong,’” Garvin said during a phone interview Friday.
Garvin asked Casper Youth Baseball’s office manager, Caitlyn Tolliver, who handled the group’s funds, for financial records to complete an audit. Tolliver refused to provide the paperwork, according to documents filed in Natrona County Circuit Court in December, and she was fired.
Tolliver is charged with grand larceny for allegedly using the organization’s funds to make personal purchases and write additional paychecks for herself. She stole more than $65,000 from the group, police say.
“I don’t think it generally starts out as ill intent,” said Casper police detective Shannon Daley. “I think one day the bills are short and they need $500 to get to payday. But then they keep on borrowing and borrowing, until it’s nearly impossible to pay it back.”
Another local woman is facing charges that she stole thousands of dollars from the youth organization she worked for.
Katherine Sue Strom is accused of stealing more than $13,000 while she was the director of the Wyoming Youth Sports Association, according to court documents. She allegedly used the organization's bank account to make payments on her credit card and to purchase Kindle e-readers from Amazon.
The organization’s newly elected director contacted Casper police in March about the missing money. Strom was charged in October with two counts of grand larceny and two counts of misdemeanor larceny. She pleaded not guilty in December.
Neither Tolliver nor Strom had a history of fraud, Daley said.
A woman in Gillette, who was the treasurer for the Gillette Hockey Association for four years, was also recently accused of fraud. Micky Culey faces 10 charges of forgery and one charge of larceny, all felonies, according to an affidavit filed in Campbell County District Court in November. Culey allegedly forged checks using the name of an assistant coach.
How it happens
Daley said there are three factors that cause a person in a position of trust to steal money from the organization they represent: opportunity, rationalization and pressure.
The first factor is straightforward.
“If they’d never had access to the business’ checking account, they never would have had the opportunity to steal the money,” Daley said.
Rationalization can come in different forms. Daley said Strom rationalized taking the money because she had been director of the Wyoming Youth Sports Association for 10 years, but the role had only recently become a paid position. Before 2010, the director was a volunteer position. She asserted the checks she wrote herself were back pay for the years she was not paid.
Tolliver declined to be interviewed by police, Daley said, so she wasn’t sure how the woman had rationalized taking the money she took.
The third factor is pressure, oftentimes financial.
"'I won’t make it to payday,' for instance," Daley said.
Tolliver is accused of using Casper Youth Baseball’s debit card to purchase office supplies, a bicycle, a dog kennel, tires, license plates and toys. She allegedly used the account to make cellphone payments.
Tolliver also reportedly wrote a check to Mountain View Elementary School for $400, but the school asked the organization’s former president if the check was authorized, since Casper Youth Baseball is a nonprofit. The man told the school it was not. When approached, Tolliver told him she had accidentally written the check using the wrong bank account.
When authorized purchases go unnoticed or unpunished, the perpetrator develops a sense of invincibility.
“When they’re still not caught, it’s like, ‘Oh, nobody’s ever going to catch me,’” Daley said.
Casper Youth Baseball has amended their policies to prevent another employee from abusing the group’s finances, Garvin said. Five of their nine board members are new, and all major expenses now have to be approved by the board.
“Our customers will see a lot of differences this year,” Garvin said. “We are committed to our customers and giving value to the fees they pay to let their kids play baseball.”
How organizations can prevent it
Oversight is essential for stopping such crimes, Daley said.
Tolliver reported to the Casper Youth Baseball’s board of directors quarterly, and the Wyoming Youth Sports Association had annual meetings that Strom attended, but neither woman was ever required to show bank statements. There was no verification of the funds.
“It was just going off their word,” Daley said. “There was no oversight from other people.”
While it’s not unusual for businesses to have only one person doing the books, Daley said it’s wiser to have one person writing the checks and another person receiving bank statements.
“Having one person receiving money and depositing it and then reconciling the bank statements, you’re at risk of people being able to steal from you,” said Jody Shields, director of the Wyoming Nonprofit Network. “It’s just having more than one person involved in processing, paying and receiving funds.”
Diane Berg, president of the Casper Amateur Hockey Club, said the group’s board of directors must approve all expenses not included in the already-approved operating budget. The organization has a treasurer, who proposes additional expenses at monthly meetings with board members. Berg and three other executives for the club are the only ones with signing authority.
Shields said every nonprofit should take steps to ensure they have procedures in place to prevent an employee from exploiting group funds. That’s more difficult for small nonprofits with only one or two employees, she said, but her organization offers training and checklists for organizations to develop policies.
It’s expected that any organization defrauded by one of their own will feel embarrassed, Daley said, but they shouldn’t beat themselves up too much.
“I think it’s more common than is reported,” the detective said.
Cindy Garvin checked the organization’s bank account and realized about $50,000 was missing.
“It was one of those gut-wrenching things, where you just go, ‘Oh my God, this can’t be real. Please be wrong,’” Garvin said during a phone interview Friday.
Garvin asked Casper Youth Baseball’s office manager, Caitlyn Tolliver, who handled the group’s funds, for financial records to complete an audit. Tolliver refused to provide the paperwork, according to documents filed in Natrona County Circuit Court in December, and she was fired.
Tolliver is charged with grand larceny for allegedly using the organization’s funds to make personal purchases and write additional paychecks for herself. She stole more than $65,000 from the group, police say.
“I don’t think it generally starts out as ill intent,” said Casper police detective Shannon Daley. “I think one day the bills are short and they need $500 to get to payday. But then they keep on borrowing and borrowing, until it’s nearly impossible to pay it back.”
Another local woman is facing charges that she stole thousands of dollars from the youth organization she worked for.
Katherine Sue Strom is accused of stealing more than $13,000 while she was the director of the Wyoming Youth Sports Association, according to court documents. She allegedly used the organization's bank account to make payments on her credit card and to purchase Kindle e-readers from Amazon.
The organization’s newly elected director contacted Casper police in March about the missing money. Strom was charged in October with two counts of grand larceny and two counts of misdemeanor larceny. She pleaded not guilty in December.
Neither Tolliver nor Strom had a history of fraud, Daley said.
A woman in Gillette, who was the treasurer for the Gillette Hockey Association for four years, was also recently accused of fraud. Micky Culey faces 10 charges of forgery and one charge of larceny, all felonies, according to an affidavit filed in Campbell County District Court in November. Culey allegedly forged checks using the name of an assistant coach.
How it happens
Daley said there are three factors that cause a person in a position of trust to steal money from the organization they represent: opportunity, rationalization and pressure.
The first factor is straightforward.
“If they’d never had access to the business’ checking account, they never would have had the opportunity to steal the money,” Daley said.
Rationalization can come in different forms. Daley said Strom rationalized taking the money because she had been director of the Wyoming Youth Sports Association for 10 years, but the role had only recently become a paid position. Before 2010, the director was a volunteer position. She asserted the checks she wrote herself were back pay for the years she was not paid.
Tolliver declined to be interviewed by police, Daley said, so she wasn’t sure how the woman had rationalized taking the money she took.
The third factor is pressure, oftentimes financial.
"'I won’t make it to payday,' for instance," Daley said.
Tolliver is accused of using Casper Youth Baseball’s debit card to purchase office supplies, a bicycle, a dog kennel, tires, license plates and toys. She allegedly used the account to make cellphone payments.
Tolliver also reportedly wrote a check to Mountain View Elementary School for $400, but the school asked the organization’s former president if the check was authorized, since Casper Youth Baseball is a nonprofit. The man told the school it was not. When approached, Tolliver told him she had accidentally written the check using the wrong bank account.
When authorized purchases go unnoticed or unpunished, the perpetrator develops a sense of invincibility.
“When they’re still not caught, it’s like, ‘Oh, nobody’s ever going to catch me,’” Daley said.
Casper Youth Baseball has amended their policies to prevent another employee from abusing the group’s finances, Garvin said. Five of their nine board members are new, and all major expenses now have to be approved by the board.
“Our customers will see a lot of differences this year,” Garvin said. “We are committed to our customers and giving value to the fees they pay to let their kids play baseball.”
How organizations can prevent it
Oversight is essential for stopping such crimes, Daley said.
Tolliver reported to the Casper Youth Baseball’s board of directors quarterly, and the Wyoming Youth Sports Association had annual meetings that Strom attended, but neither woman was ever required to show bank statements. There was no verification of the funds.
“It was just going off their word,” Daley said. “There was no oversight from other people.”
While it’s not unusual for businesses to have only one person doing the books, Daley said it’s wiser to have one person writing the checks and another person receiving bank statements.
“Having one person receiving money and depositing it and then reconciling the bank statements, you’re at risk of people being able to steal from you,” said Jody Shields, director of the Wyoming Nonprofit Network. “It’s just having more than one person involved in processing, paying and receiving funds.”
Diane Berg, president of the Casper Amateur Hockey Club, said the group’s board of directors must approve all expenses not included in the already-approved operating budget. The organization has a treasurer, who proposes additional expenses at monthly meetings with board members. Berg and three other executives for the club are the only ones with signing authority.
Shields said every nonprofit should take steps to ensure they have procedures in place to prevent an employee from exploiting group funds. That’s more difficult for small nonprofits with only one or two employees, she said, but her organization offers training and checklists for organizations to develop policies.
It’s expected that any organization defrauded by one of their own will feel embarrassed, Daley said, but they shouldn’t beat themselves up too much.
“I think it’s more common than is reported,” the detective said.
Saturday, January 19, 2013
Rocklin youth sports organization president accused of embezzlement in California
FROM SACBEE.COM
The president of Rocklin Junior Thunder Football and Cheer Association was arrested this morning, accused of embezzling from the organization.
Stephanie Ann Abercrombie, 41, (pictured) was booked into Placer County Jail on suspicion of burglary, embezzlement of more than $400 and forgery.
On Dec. 5, Rocklin police received a report alleging that Ambercrombie had embezzled funds that had been entrusted to her for the daily operations of the nonprofit youth sports organization. After several weeks of investigation it was determined that Abercrombie had embezzled more than $20,000 from the Rocklin Junior Thunder, according to a Police Department news release.
The president of Rocklin Junior Thunder Football and Cheer Association was arrested this morning, accused of embezzling from the organization.
Stephanie Ann Abercrombie, 41, (pictured) was booked into Placer County Jail on suspicion of burglary, embezzlement of more than $400 and forgery.
On Dec. 5, Rocklin police received a report alleging that Ambercrombie had embezzled funds that had been entrusted to her for the daily operations of the nonprofit youth sports organization. After several weeks of investigation it was determined that Abercrombie had embezzled more than $20,000 from the Rocklin Junior Thunder, according to a Police Department news release.
At 8:30 this morning, Rocklin detectives arrested Abercrombie at her home.
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