Berkeley schools CFO who embezzled $1.2 million sentenced to 63 months in federal prison

The former chief financial officer who stole $1.2 million from the Berkeley County School District was sentenced Wednesday to more than five years in federal prison for what authorities have described as possibly the largest public embezzlement scheme in South Carolina.

A judge handed down the sentence to 62-year-old Brantley Denmark Thomas III during a hearing in U.S. District Court in downtown Charleston.

The once-respected and longtime district administrator previously pleaded guilty to 20 federal counts of embezzlement, honest services wire fraud, and money laundering over a 16 year stretch.

His 63-month sentence fell at the highest end of a prison term called for by federal sentencing guidelines.

Thomas, who said little during his sentencing while clad in a striped jail jumpsuit, also faces prosecution in state court where 35 other criminal counts are pending. He will serve any prison time for those charges after completing his federal prison term. 

Dozens of school district representatives packed the courtroom Wednesday along with Thomas’ supporters. Some district employees wrote letters to District Judge David Norton detailing the impact of Thomas’ crimes, but they did not speak in court.

Brantley Thomas. Provided

Norton said Thomas pocketed funds that should have benefited students and also accepted $32,000 in bribes and kickbacks.

The crimes didn’t stop when Thomas was hit with state and federal charges. The state Attorney General’s Office, which is prosecuting the state case, said Thomas stole around $35,000 from Jackson Davenport Vision Center, a Charleston eye care business that employed him as a bookkeeper while he was out on bond in 2017 and 2018.

Norton said Thomas has an apparent “OPM addiction,” referencing his thefts of “other people’s money.”

Thomas was ordered to pay $1.2 million in restitution to the school district, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. He will serve three years on court supervision after he is released from prison.

Superintendent Eddie Ingram, who was hired by the district in the wake of the embezzlement scandal, said Thomas’ sentence represented a “major step” for the district to move forward.

“It’s sort of a breath of fresh air,” he said.

Thomas oversaw all of the district’s finances, including a nearly $260 million general fund. With a salary of $130,500, he was among the district’s highest paid employees in the district, and he also collected a pension during the final years of his career.

District lawyer Josh Whitley said Thomas’ “larger financial mismanagement” overshadowed the $1.2 million he embezzled. The former CFO misspent $46 million of the fund balance, Whitley said, and the district later had to restore it or risk losing its bond rating. Thomas also misspent the district’s construction budget for facilities by “tens of millions of dollars,” Whitley said.

Officials said they’ve addressed the shortfall by issuing bonds and hiring new auditors and financial advisers, though such efforts have lessened their ability to focus on the needs of students in the rapidly growing county.

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Berkeley schools suing popular auditing firm for missing CFO’s $1.2 million embezzlement

Berkeley County School District on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against its former auditing firm seeking “in excess of $10 million or other amount to be determined at trial” because the firm did not detect a $1.2 embezzlement by the district’s CFO. 

The district fired Thomas in February 2017 after officials learned that the FBI and Wells Fargo bank were looking into missing funds.

The FBI’s probe, prompted by a tip, uncovered a pervasive scheme that began in 2001 and grew more sophisticated in later years.

Authorities said Thomas stole from the district on at least 45 occasions, using several methods that included overpaying vendors through school district accounts and then depositing refund checks into his personal account.

Among the stolen funds were federal grants intended for special-education students.

Authorities said Thomas also pocketed at least $32,000 in bribes and kickbacks for awarding the district’s insurance policy contracts to specific companies.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Daniel Ryan wrote that Thomas’ thievery funded a lifestyle of luxury: international travel, jewelry and a membership at the Carolina Yacht Club.

Thomas’ defense attorney, Matt Hubbell, portrayed his client as a “broken and ashamed man” who was prepared to accept a significant prison term. He said Thomas completed an alcohol addiction treatment program in November and has been devoted to caring for his 18-year-old daughter.

The attorney asked that Thomas serve his federal sentence at a minimum-security prison camp in Estill.

Whitley, the district’s attorney, said officials expect Thomas to receive a longer sentence on the state charges, which include counts of embezzlement, misconduct in office, and forgery.

A spokesman for Attorney General’s Office said Thomas has not entered a plea. A date for his next court hearing in that case was not finalized as of Wednesday.

Berkeley County Schools finance director fired after allegations of misappropriating funds

The chief financial officer of Berkeley County School District has been fired in the wake of allegations of misappropriating funds, and school officials had little to say Wednesday about the amount of money involved or the potential impact on schools there.

Brantley D. Thomas III, who has worked for the district since 1993, oversaw all of the district’s monies, including its nearly $260 million general fund.

Superintendent Brenda Blackburn, Board Chairwoman Sally Wofford, Vice Chairman Mac McQuillin and district lawyers learned of an investigation into the district’s finances during a Monday meeting with investigators from Wells Fargo and the FBI.


“We appreciate Wells Fargo and the FBI for promptly bringing this to our attention,” Wofford said in a statement released Wednesday. "We ask the public’s patience as we thoroughly investigate this matter and promise to take all appropriate actions.”

Blackburn fired Thomas, 60, on Tuesday, according to a district press release. Thomas has not yet been charged because the investigation is ongoing.

Calls to Thomas' home went unanswered Wednesday afternoon, and his lawyer, Matt Hubbell, said he could not comment other than to say that Thomas is fully cooperating with authorities.

The release did not specify how much money was at issue. It said a review of all financial accounts and monetary transactions is underway.

The school board held an emergency meeting Monday to receive advice from district lawyer Josh Whitley on a criminal investigation. It voted immediately to go into closed session, which lasted about an hour, and then adjourned without comment.

Board members reached Wednesday refused to comment, citing the ongoing investigation. They would not say how much money is missing or how it might impact district operations.

The district also declined to comment. An acting CFO has not yet been appointed, officials said.

The district has come under fire in the last couple of years for some financial decisions, including large property tax increases in 2015 and 2016.

In addition, after a State Law Enforcement Division investigation into the district’s $198 million Yes for Schools building campaign, the district spent more than $500,000 on salaries for indicted employees Rodney Thompson and Amy Kovach and lawyer’s fees for the pair and Deputy Superintendent Archie Franchini, who was not indicted. Thompson and Kovach both pleaded guilty to ethics violations in connection with the 2012 referendum campaign.

In November, voters expressed their dissatisfaction with the board by electing four new members associated with the county’s conservative Republicans. Three board members chose not to seek re-election and two incumbents, Chairman Jim Hayes and Julius Barnes, were defeated.

At its Jan. 10 meeting, the board received the results of an audit for its fiscal year ending June 30, during which Larry Finney of Greenville-based accounting firm Greene, Finney & Horton gave the district an “unmodified opinion,” the best result possible.

The audit did not look at every transaction, but instead used a sampling technique, Finney said at the time.

“Those are the kinds of things that let me sleep at night,” Superintendent Brenda Blackburn said upon hearing the favorable report.

Thomas, a Hanahan resident, is a 1975 graduate of Porter-Gaud and earned an accounting degree from Wofford College in 1979.

Until Tuesday, he was listed as chairman of the S.C. Association of Governmental Organizations, a nonprofit program created in 2002 to fund the building of school facilities through municipal bonds, according to its website. On Wednesday, Thomas’ name was removed from the site, and Horry County accounting officer William Saunders was listed as acting chairman.

Thomas' brother-in-law, Mike Gallagher, director of Compass Municipal Advisors in Columbia, serves as the organization's financial adviser and program administrator

SC teacher accused of stealing donations meant for American Cancer Society

A longtime teacher is accused of stealing money raised by students and staff meant for the American Cancer Society, according to the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office.

Yvonne Johnson Oswald, 48, is charged with embezzlement of public funds.

Oswald was a teacher for more than 20 years and worked at A.R. Rucker Middle School for the Lancaster County School District. School district leaders said students and staff were able to pay $2 to participate in “dress down” days rather than wearing school uniforms.

The money was to be deposited and donated to the American Cancer Society by Oswald, the report states.

An employee reported the possible embezzlement to the school district in January 2016.

The school district conducted an internal investigation and turned findings over to the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office. Funds were noted to be missing from collections in September 2015 and November 2015, according to the school district.

Oswald was questioned by school leaders and the conversation was recorded.

The veteran teacher admitted that she had not deposited an estimated $500 from September and had instead used the money for personal purposes, according to the sheriff’s report. Oswald told deputies that $600 from November 2015 collections was “locked up in her room,” the report states.

That money was recovered, Lancaster County School leaders said. Oswald resigned from her position within the school district and was arrested and charged last week.

According to the sheriff’s report, Oswald had been instructed to govern the fundraiser money “for the past few years.”

For parents like Cassie Bright, the allegations against the teacher are personal.

“My father had cancer. Half of my family has died of cancer, and that just makes me really really upset, that is wrong,” Bright said.

Bryan Vaughn with Lancaster County Schools said school staffers placed the former employee on paid leave while they conducted an internal investigation.

“I think there’s a lot of concern, just from a moral standpoint,” Vaughn said. “Anytime public dollars are taken I think there’s a trust issue.”

Vaughn said it was possible the district could recover the $500 through restitution, depending on the outcome of the criminal court case.

According to Vaughn, Oswald was cooperative during the investigation.

“Once she was confronted, she was cooperative with the investigation and she took responsibility for her actions,” Vaughn said.

WBTV went to Oswald’s listed address for a comment, but no one came to the door.

Neighbors said the allegations are against her character.

“I was surprised, and I hate it for her, and I know she didn’t really mean to do anything wrong,” said neighbor Glenn Sowers.

Bright said giving money to allow her child to challenge the dress code occasionally hit her pocket book, but she thought the money was going towards a good cause.

“We work hard for that money, and for us to give our kids $2, it might not seem like it’s a lot, but sometimes it is,” said Bright.

Woman arrested for embezzlement from Riverside Elementary School daycare

A 28-year-old Longs woman has been arrested and charged with embezzling money from the Riverside Elementary School's daycare.

Mandy Bellamy, of Longs, has been charged with embezzlement of public funds, value $5,000 or more, according to detention center records.

Police were called by the principal and bookkeeper who said that they were told by the child care director that Bellamy had been acting strangely the past few weeks and showed an "overwhelming interest in receiving the money from parents and would always want to drop the 'money bag' at the end of the work day," said a police report.

On one occasion the bookkeeper found the money bag $170 dollars short and a record of that specific payment was missing from the money bag, according to the report.

Surveillance footage was reviewed and Bellamy was seen walking down the hall with the bag, but then sitting down on a chair and unzipping the bag, according to the report.

She is then seen, according to the police report, pulling out several payments, setting one aside and returning the others to the bag.

After seeing this tape, other instances were discovered where Bellamy carried the money bag to be delivered and some recorded payments never made their way to the bookkeeper, according to the report.

Horry County school employee charged with embezzlement

An Horry County Schools employee has been arrested on embezzlement charges.

The Sun News of Myrtle Beach reported that 28-year-old Mandy Diana Bellamy of Longs is charged with embezzlement of public funds.

Bellamy worked in the child care program at Riverside Elementary School in Little River.

A police report said Riverside Elementary staff became suspicious in December when a money bag for the child care program was $170 short.

The report said an audit showed several payments that were never given to the bookkeeper.

The report said staff noticed that Bellamy often offered to take the money bag to the bookkeeper's office.

She has been placed on administrative leave. It was not clear if she has an attorney.

Former town clerk accused of embezzling funds from town and church in South Carolina

 Following a SLED investigation, a Saluda County woman is facing charges of embezzlement of public funds.

Ellen Pamela Long, 63, has been arrested and charged with embezzlement of public funds of $10,000 or more, forgery of $10,000 or more and breach of trust with fraudulent intent.

According to an affidavit, Long, while working as the Town Clerk for the Town of Ward, is alleged to have embezzled funds from the Town between January 1 of 2003 and August 1 of 2014.

Long is alleged to have used town funds during that time frame to make credit card payments and endorse checks to her husband for herself to cash.

Long is also accused of taking funds from Ward Baptist Church, where she worked as the church's treasurer.

She was in charge of the congregation's bank accounts and used that money for her own personal use.

In both instances of fraudulent activity, Ward provided a written confession to the fraudulent activity she has been charged with as both the Town Clerk and Church Treasurer.

Ward is being held at the Saluda County Detention Center.

Former charter school director used shell companies to steal federal money

Federal prosecutors Wednesday said a former public charter school director used shell companies to embezzle more than $1 million in federal funds provided to the school for food and educational purposes.

U.S. Attorney Winston Holliday alleged that 40-year-old Benita Dinkins-Robinson, director of the former Mary L. Dinkins Higher Learning Academy in Bishopville, siphoned off money using four shell companies – J and J Contracting, T and E Catering, New Age Computers and Project Reach – that accepted payments of school money.

The school was a part of the S.C. Public Charter School District – a growing group of 31 public schools with 17,000 students and 500 teachers across South Carolina in more than a dozen counties. The Legislature created the statewide charter school district in 2007 as a way to empower parents and others to set up public schools with different missions. The Dinkins school was closed in 2013 after the charter district voted to stop its funding.

The Dinkins school was in rural Lee County and qualified for Title I funding, which allowed it to receive money for food and education for the students from the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Department of Education.

But testimony from Janice Crocco, a former 5th grade teacher at the Dinkins school, suggested that the federal funds never benefited the students.

Crocco, who worked for the school for a little over five months beginning in December 2010, said students would often go without meals at lunch because there was no food. In those instances, students would have to wait until pizza was ordered at the school just before they were dismissed.

Crocco also said the school’s overall cleanliness and organization was in disarray. She said when she would take her 12 students to the bathroom, she often brought toilet paper with her because there wasn’t any in the doorless stalls. She also said that Dinkins-Robinson was at the school only two to three days out of the week and would often not show up for scheduled faculty meetings.

Holliday alleged that Dinkins-Robinson would use the funding from the government to pay for a catering company, T and E Catering, to provide food for students. However, Eleazor Carter, Dinkins-Robinson’s attorney, said that while his client was a business partner in the catering company, the state’s charter school district approved of their services. Carter also conceded that Dinkins-Robinson was a founding member of Project Reach and that her brother owned New Age Computers.

Along with large cash withdrawals from the school’s account, Holliday said Dinkins-Robinson would make out checks to pay rent for the building in which the school operated that were in excess of the rent amount due. He alleged that she would spend the extra money on lavish vacations and shopping sprees.

The Dinkins school at first operated under the Lee County School District. It asked to be authorized as a charter school in Sumter County, reporting to the state charter school district, after receiving pushback and alleged harassment from Lee County, according to Carter.

Clay Eaton, a witness for the prosecution and a former public relations director for the charter school district, said when he inspected the school between 2010 and 2012 after it applied to be authorized by the charter district, he noticed the school would report inflated students numbers to the charter district, sometimes by the dozens.

Each public school and public charter school receives funding from state and federal entities on a per-pupil basis. If a public school has a large amount of special needs students or a large student population in general, it gets a higher per-pupil amount from the federal government.

U.S. Judge Terry Wooten dismissed Wednesday’s hearing early in light of the winter storm moving through the state. Wooten said the next trial session will be held Friday, weather permitting.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2015/02/25/4010299/opening-arguments-begin-in-million.html#storylink=cpy

Merced College embezzlement suspect pleads not guilty in South Carolina

A former Merced College employee accused of stealing $363,000 from the school entered a plea of not guilty during his arraignment Monday.

Joseph Bisinger, 48, faces felony charges in Merced Superior Court for four counts of theft by false pretenses. Each count carries an enhancement because of the amount of money in question.

He was arrested last week and held at John Latoracca Correctional Facility in lieu of $100,000 bail. Bisinger was released Monday on his own recognizance after a recommendation from the Merced County Probation Department.

He faces a maximum of six years in a state prison.

Judge Mark V. Bacciarini presided over the hearing and set Bisinger’s next court appearance for 8:30 a.m. Sept. 8.

Jeffrey Tenenbaum, Bisinger’s attorney, told the judge his client was not a flight risk. Bisinger has been a resident in the county for a decade, Tenenbaum said, and his children live in the area.

Bisinger was placed on administrative leave in April while being investigated by Merced College and fired from the school in May. As Merced College’s lead purchasing agent, he was in charge of dealing with vendors and purchasing supplies for the campus, according to the college.

Prosecutors say Bisinger used a fake janitorial company to charge Merced College for services that never took place over a seven-year period. The charges went back to November 2007 and continued through February.

Merced County Deputy District Attorney Walter Wall said all victims are treated equally by his office, whether a single person or the taxpayers of Merced County.

Wall said some members of the community may see a crime against a public institution as particularly heinous. “The fact that the victim is a local community college serving multiple members of our youthful population – that’s a factor we seriously consider,” he said.

The discrepancy in Merced College’s records came to light, prosecutors said, when an employee noticed that the janitorial services were being charged to the old address of Merced College’s Los Banos campus. The campus on the west side of Merced County moved into its new location in September 2007.

The charges apparently went unnoticed by the annual audits conducted by an outside organization, hired each year by Merced College to go through the school’s books.

Bisinger started working for the college in March 2006 as a receiving clerk. He became the lead buyer in June 2010. As lead purchasing buyer, he made $48,300 per year.

Former SC church bookkeeper sentenced in theft

A woman who worked as a bookkeeper at a church in Clover has been sentenced to two years in prison for stealing more than $600,000.
The Herald of Rock Hill reported that 67-year-old Sandra Stroupe was sentenced in U.S. District Court on Friday.
Prosecutors say she took the money from the Clover Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church while working as a bookkeeper. They say she used the money to pay for living expenses, buy gifts and luxuries and pay off credit card debt.
Stroupe also must pay $610,000 in restitution.
She pleaded guilty in March to mail fraud.
Stroupe was the church's bookkeeper for 38 years. Court documents say the thefts occurred between 2006 and 2013.

Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2014/07/11/5038119/former-sc-church-bookkeeper-sentenced.html#.U8PkyyJOW1s#storylink=cpy

Sentencing delayed in White Knoll High sports money embezzlement case in South Carolina

Circuit Judge Robert Hood on Monday delayed sentencing of former White Knoll High School athletic director Bryan Butz who in late August pleaded guilty to embezzling money that was supposed to have gone to help equip the school’s sports teams.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2013/09/30/3011761/sentencing-delayed-in-white-knoll.html#storylink=cpy

According to a warrant in the case, Butz embezzled more than $135,000 from June 2006 to September 2010, when he was arrested. Much of the money he stole came from the school’s Booster Club and was put in what school officials have called a “rogue” checking account in a Lexington bank. Butz then used a debit card to withdraw the money, investigators said.
Butz was supposed to have been sentenced Aug. 28, the date he pleaded guilty. But sentencing was delayed while the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s office and Butz’s attorney, Theo Williams, discussed options for Butz to make restitution.
The outcome of those discussions could have a bearing on how long a prison term Butz serves, or if he goes to prison. He could receive a maximum of 10 years.
However, discussions between prosecutor Robert Elam and the defense are still continuing, with Butz saying he did not take anywhere near $135,000, according to lawyers in the case.
Butz will meet in the near future with Lexington 1 chief financial officer John Butler to go over the financial aspects of the charges against him.
Butz declined comment Monday. More than a dozen of his supporters were on hand to speak on his behalf in the small courtroom at the Lexington County Judicial Center. Only a handful of school officials showed up.
A big unknown in the case is what Butz did with the money he has pleaded guilty to stealing. As athletic director, Butz made $80,000 a year and was one of the school’s most visible officials, attending sports events, mixing with students, players and coaches. He scheduled games and paid referees.
Butz’s embezzlement came to light when Lexington 1 officials noticed a deficit in money raised by boosters, forcing Butz to restore some of the money taken.
At that time, Butz overdrew an account he had diverted money to, causing an overdraft that led bank officials to contact school leaders about the situation. Elam said at the August plea hearing.
Butz came to the school in 2002 as an athletic trainer before his promotion to athletic director.
White Knoll is the largest of five high schools in Lexington 1. It has nearly 2,000 students.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2013/09/30/3011761/sentencing-delayed-in-white-knoll.html#storylink=cpy

Former White Knoll, South Carolina High athletics director pleads guilty to embezzlement

 Former White Knoll High School athletics director Bryan Butz pleaded guilty Wednesday to embezzling money raised to help equip sports teams.

His sentencing was deferred until Sept. 30, after Assistant 11th Circuit Solicitor Robert Elam said discussions are continuing about repayment.

“We have some issues regarding restitution,” he said.

Butz is charged with embezzling more than $135,000 in public money, but Elam said there is a dispute on the amount.

Circuit Judge Robert Hood accepted the plea.

Butz said little other than to tell the judge he is on medication for depression.

The outcome came nearly three years after Butz was charged with embezzling money.

He took checks from the school athletic booster club and deposited them in a private checking account from 2006-10, officials have said.

Butz handled the club money because, as athletic director, he was supposed to buy things such as uniforms for school teams with the funds.

He came to the school in 2002 as an athletics trainer and was later promoted to athletics director.

White Knoll is the second-largest high school in Lexington 1 with more than 1,800 students.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2013/08/28/2946404/former-white-knoll-high-athletics.html#storylink=cpy

Lexington, South Carolina embezzlement case at White Knoll High nearing court date

After nearly three years, the case of alleged embezzlement against former White Knoll High School athletic director Bryan Butz is close to being resolved, an assistant prosecutor said last week.

A court date will be set for Butz’s case within the next few months and a resolution should be reached by early fall at the latest, assistant 11th Judicial Circuit solicitor Robert Elam said.

Elam declined to say what has delayed getting the case to trial has been.

In October 2010, the Lexington County Sheriff’s Department charged the longtime White Knoll athletics director with embezzling more than $135,000 in public money.

According to a warrant in the felony case, the money came from a checking account that Butz was using at a Lexington Bank without the knowledge of school officials. From about 2006 to 2010, Butz deposited checks totaling $135,000 from the school’s Booster Club into the account. Then, he used a debit card to withdraw money from the account for his own use, according to a warrant in the case.

The Booster Club turned the money over to Butz because, in his position as athletic director, he was supposed to act as a go-between between the club and the high school. The High School would purchase sports items, such as uniforms, and pay for them with Booster Club money.

The checking account was discovered after Butz overdrew money from it, causing bank officials to notify the school Booster Club, according to Lexington 1 school officials, who spoke about the case when Butz was arrested and relieved of his $80,000-a-year job.

Law officials have not said what Butz did with the money he is alleged to have taken. Butz has pleaded not guilty in the case.

Butz joined the school in 2002 as an athletics trainer. In 2006, he was promoted to athletics director. White Knoll, with more than 1,800 students, is the district’s second largest high school.

Read more here: http://www.thestate.com/2013/07/07/2851637/lexington-embezzlement-case-at.html#storylink=cpy

Police investigate possible embezzlement of West Pelzer Elementary PTO account in South Carolina

Police are investigating a possible embezzlement of at least $3,300 from a West Pelzer Elementary School PTO account, police and school officials said.
“We do have a suspect,” said West Pelzer Police Chief Mike Clardy.
A forensic audit will have to be done going back about two and a half years to determine how much money is missing, he said, which could take a couple of weeks.
“It’s an ongoing investigation,” he said.
David Havird, associate superintendent of Anderson District 1, said the money was taken from a PTO account.
“We are wrapping up the investigation and feel pretty comfortable that we have recovered the majority of the funds,” Havird said.
PTO funds aren’t under the school or school district’s control, he said.

Two Former East Carolina University Employees Charged With Embezzlement

Two former ECU employees are accused of stealing thousands of dollars while they worked as cashiers at a university operated pharmacy.
Sandra Martinez of Greenville was arrested yesterday by ECU police on a charge of embezzlement of state property. Courthouse documents say the 37-year-old woman stole $62,428.73. Sherry Moore, 34, of La Grange was charged Wednesday with taking $17,000.
Both worked at the Bernstein Center Pharmacy on Easy Street and ECU says the thefts happened from July 1, 2010 until October 31, 2012.
ECU says an internal audit identified possible financial discrepancies and ECU police began a criminal investigation in November.
The university says Martinez was cashier and had worked for them since April 2011. Moore was a pharmacy technician and had been an employee since June 2001.
Both women were fired on January 9th for unacceptable personal conduct, according to ECU.
The pharmacy at the Bernstein Center is operated by ECU Physicians.
ECU says it has implemented additional measures to strengthen oversight to prevent future thefts

PTO chief charged with embezzling thousands of dollars in South Carolina

FROM WISCTV.COM  -

A Batesburg-Leesville mother is charged with embezzling thousands of dollars from a local parent-teacher organization she headed up. Some of that money was supposed to go to a little boy battling leukemia.

For more than a year, school leaders for Batesburg-Leesville Primary School say Tonya Timmerman, the president of the parent-teacher organization, spent thousands of dollars from two school PTO accounts.
Some of that money was supposed to go to Tammy Boldt's son Ryan, who's fighting leukemia. "Very shocking," said Boldt. "Disbelief. Just unbelievable."
In May, PTO members say they found out the money was disappearing when a fundraising company called the school looking for payment. PTO member Stacey Derrick went to the bank to check the bank records with authorities. "I just kept turning the pages and thinking' this can't be happening, this can't be happening,'" said Derrick.
Derrick says all the money was gone. Investigators say the suspect used some of money to pay for personal expenses.
Derrick says parents scraped together the hard-earned money to pay for school equipment, building upgrades and even medical bills for little Ryan. "This is someone who I trusted and really thought the world of," said Boldt.
Timmerman is charged with two counts of breach of trust, one with fraudulent intent between $2k and $10K and the other in excess of $10k. and was released on $50,000 bond. She is expected back in court in September.

Ex-University of South Carolina accountant has yet to face sentencing in $179,000 theft

FROM THE STATE:

Last December, former University of South Carolina accountant Lawrence “Trey” Godwin III pleaded guilty in a Richland County courtroom to stealing some $179,000 from USC during 2006 and 2006.

Now, almost six months after his guilty plea, Godwin, 35, of Camden, still has not been sentenced to either a prison term or probation.
No official — not Circuit Judge Casey Manning, who accepted the guilty plea, nor 5th Circuit Solicitor Dan Johnson, whose office is prosecuting the case — will give a reason for the delay.
Efforts to reach Godwin’s attorney, Melissa Armstrong, were unsuccessful.
USC, the victim in the case, released a statement saying Godwin had made restitution in the amount of $59,157 following his guilty plea. The university turned that amount over to its insurance company, which earlier had paid the school $124,798 as partial compensation for the missing money.
USC said in its statement that Goodwin’s partial restitution “effectively” ends” university involvement in this matter. To discuss his status further is not appropriate because we’re not privy to all the facts that the judge would have in determining the proper sentence,” the statement said.
Manning gave no indication of when he intends to sentence Godwin. Normally, convicted criminals in South Carolina who plead guilty to felonies, as Godwin did, are sentenced sooner.
In any event, the six-month sentencing delay is just one more delay in a seemingly straightforward case marked by years of delay.
Five years ago, in July 2006, Godwin was arrested by USC detectives and charged with breach of trust with fraudulent intent, embezzlement and credit card misuse.
Once a trusted accountant, Godwin had looted cash machines at the university that he was supposed to be tending and then falsified cash reports to cover up his crimes, according to warrants in the case.
A routine audit turned up the discrepancies, which took place between July 2005 and July 2006. Goodwin, who had worked at USC since February 2002, also was caught on a surveillance camera. Confronted, he confessed and admitted his guilt to officers, according to warrants.
Despite the evidence, his case fell into limbo.
Prosecutors said a succession of defense and prosecution attorneys were assigned to the case, making a speedy prosecution difficult.
Last year, after The State began looking into the continued inaction on the case, prosecutors scheduled a plea hearing.
Godwin pleaded guilty Dec. 14 to stealing some $179,000 from the university to support a heroin habit, he told the court, apologizing.
At the time, Manning said he would delay sentencing until he learned that restitution had been paid.
Godwin could receive a sentence of up to 20 years.

Former superintendent to plead guilty of embezzlement in South Carolina

Former Marion School District 2 Superintendent Dr. Nathaniel Miller is expected to plead guilty after being indicted by the state grand jury on charges relating to the embezzlement of more than $500,000 in public funds from both the Mullins-based district and Richland School District 1.

The case is being prosecuted by the South Carolina Attorney General’s Office. Communications Director Mark Plowden said Miller is expected to plead guilty Oct. 4 at Beaufort County Courthouse.
Miller and an associate, Samuel G. Lindo, were indicted Nov. 16 in a case in which law enforcement officials said, at the time of Miller’s arrest Jan. 19, 2010, he stole $503,199.50 in district funds. Most of the money was put to personal use, paying for the college tuition of various family members and other expenses.
Miller and Lindo were indicted on two counts of criminal conspiracy, three counts of embezzlement of $5,000 or more, 15 counts of obtaining signature or property by false pretenses of a value of $5,000 or more, and eight counts of obtaining signature or property by false pretenses of a value more than $1,000.
Miller was also indicted on nine other counts: embezzlement of $5,000 or more and eight counts of forgery involving an amount of $5000 or more. The crimes covered a span from 2006 to early 2010. State authorities were not able to determine if the indictment sums still added up to $503,199.50.
Each count carries sentences of five to 10 years.
According to a SLED arrest warrant affidavit, Miller “provided a voluntary statement to law enforcement on Jan. 13, 2010, which indicated he converted the funds for personal use. The state has independent evidence to corroborate the statement provided by Nathaniel Miller.”
The Marion County School Board of Education later approved Marion 1 Superintendent Michael Lupo to serve both Marion School Distracts 1 and 2 for the school year. The county’s three school districts — Marion 1, based in Marion, Marion 2, based in Mullins, and Marion 7, based in Centenary — are in the process of consolidating into a single district. On Jan. 26, the Marion County Board of Education hired former Columbus County Schools superintendent Dan Strickland as the county’s consolidated school district superintendent effective July 1.

Pay ends Friday for two Pickens, South Carolina school employees

The School District of Pickens County Tuesday announced that the suspended Liberty High School principal and bookkeeper have now both been suspended without pay.

After the Pickens County school board voted Monday night to stop paying the school district’s employees, the board did not name the employees. Also, the payment of the two employees continues until Friday.
Tuesday’s statement does not name Liberty High School Principal Randy Gilstrap or bookkeeper Buea DeNard by name, but by job title. Both are charged with embezzlement.
According to the brief statement from the school district, “Legal steps are still being taken regarding the employment of the Liberty High School principal and bookkeeper. While those steps are in process, the district’s intent is to change each employee’s status to ‘suspension without pay’ effective Friday, April 29.”
Gilstrap and DeNard, both of whom have worked for the Pickens County school district for more than a decade, were charged this month with taking money from the school and the district. Their futures were discussed in an hour-long closed session Monday that included several other items.
Gilstrap is charged with embezzling more than $10,000 from Liberty High School and from the school district between November 2008 and February of this year. DeNard is accused of embezzling less than $10,000 between 2009 and February of this year.
When the school board came out of the closed session Monday, members voted unanimously to “sustain the superintendent’s decision to suspend the employment of a professional employee of the district.”
The board’s motion cites a section of South Carolina law that deals with suspension of educators, and officials said that portion of the law would apply to those accused of criminal acts.
The board’s Monday night motion says that Superintendent Henry Hunt is authorized to “discontinue the pay of the employee upon notice to the employee.”
The worker may also have the right to a hearing on the matter. Hunt said he and the board are following the state Fair Employment and Dismissal Act.
Lawyers for the charged workers are communicating with the school district’s attorneys.
School district spokeswoman Julie Thompson said Columbia lawyer Jane Turner is representing the district. Calls were not returned from her on Tuesday.
In the meantime, school board members say they cannot say much.
“We are going through a series of legal hurdles at this time,” board chairman Alex Saitta said.
Vice chairman Jim Shelton was equally cautious.
“This is a personnel issue, a legal issue,” he said. “It is really outside the board’s purview.”
Several days may pass before the school district or Hunt issues more public statements about any actions.
“Anything we do, we’ve got to let them know first,” school board member Ben Trotter said.
“There are procedures we have to go through, and what we’re doing now is waiting on them to respond. The ball is in their court, not ours.”
Both Gilstrap and Denard have been suspended with pay since February. The South Carolina Law Enforcement Division is still investigating.
The state Board of Education has the power to issue a final order after a court verdict, said Jim Oster, director of communications for the board. He would not comment on the Liberty case, but said the board has the power to revoke teaching certificates.
“When somebody’s charged with a crime (the board) typically will wait until the jurisdiction system has run its course before it makes a decision on the educator’s certificate,” Oster said.
The board can suspend a certificate without a formal hearing if a crime places the health, welfare or safety of students at risk. That is not the case in Liberty, he said.
Lori Gwinn, an assistant principal at Liberty High, continues to work as the school’s interim principal.

Former superintendent indicted for embezzlement in South Carolina

Tuesday afternoon, the state grand jury indicted the former school superintendent of Mullins' schools, Nathaniel Miller, on 37 counts of embezzlement.

In January, state police arrested Miller for stealing more than $500,000 from Marion School District Two in Mullins.
An arrest warrant says he used the money pay mortgages, his children's rent and their college tuition.
Miller resigned as superintendent shortly after his arrest.
Officials say he began taking the money from Marion School District Two in 2006, not long after he was hired as the district's superintendent.
The indictment says Miller embezzled the money through a company he created called Creative Educational Learning Services.
It says the company was set up to defraud the school district.
According to the indictment, Marion School District Two submitted payment to the company multiple times.
It also says in 2004, when Miller served as area superintendent for Richland School District One in Columbia, he embezzled thousands of dollars.
The state grand jury indictment says Miller and a co-conspirator created a company called Renaissance Educational Consultants.
It says Miller submitted invoices to the district for falsely asserted services provided by his company.
According to the indictment, Miller approved the invoices and would cause the funds to be deposited into accounts controlled by him and his co-conspirator.
The indictment goes on to say he also defrauded money from Marion School District Two through Renaissance Educational Consultants.
The South Carolina Attorney General's Office is prosecuting this case.
A trial date for Miller has not been set.
He remains out of jail on a $75,000 bond.

Jasper County, "South Carolina School District employee charged

The new head of academics and human resources at the Jasper County School District is facing felony charges in Goose Creek after police say he embezzled about $7,000 from a fundraiser at an elementary school where he was the principal. Arthur Lee Holmes, 45, is charged with embezzlement of public funds of more than $5,000 in Berkeley County. He was hired as the chief of academics and human resources for the Jasper County School District in June.According to an arrest warrant, Holmes “did willfully, unlawfully and feloniously embezzle public funds during a fundraiser at Marrington Elementary” in which students sold chocolate between March 12 and May 12.The incident was reported by a member of the Berkeley County School District to Goose Creek Police on Aug. 24. The complainant said Holmes, past principal, and his secretary Lynette Alston, “both stole funds from a school fundraiser.”According to the warrant, Holmes opened a First Federal bank account that was not authorized by the district and was against school policy and the arrest warrant says $7,000 of the $18,232 raised at the fundraiser was unaccounted for or spent on unauthorized purchases not related to the fundraiser.“The defendant confessed to this (officer) to keeping and/or spending some of the fundraiser money for himself,” the arrest warrant affidavit says. “The defendant also confessed to allowing the co-defendant to spend and keep some of the fundraiser money as well.”
The secretary, Alston, is facing the same embezzlement charge, according to court records.
Holmes was principal of Marrington Elementary School for one year until the school year ended in the spring.
Holmes was at his office at the Jasper County School District on Tuesday but directed comments to his attorney Eduardo Curry of North Charleston.
“Dr. Holmes believes in the criminal justice system and maintains his innocence,” Curry said. “He thinks that after all the facts are flushed out, that the community will understand and that he will be vindicated.”
Curry said there would be “legal and factual explanations for any inaccuracies in the accounting principles.”
Meanwhile, school officials in Jasper County are investigating the matter.
“The district will be looking into this,” said spokesman Bob Huff. “In that it does affect our personnel, I can’t make any comment on it at this time.”
Personnel issues can’t be addressed publicly, he said. Huff said School Superintendent Vashti Washington was made aware of the allegations and the matter was under discussion Tuesday.
According to the Berkeley County Ninth Judicial Circuit Court records, Holmes was officially charged Sept. 23.
Before becoming a principal in Goose Creek, he taught in both Charleston and Dorchester IV before moving to Berkeley County in 2004.
He served as assistant principal at Cainhoy Elementary/ Middle and the Daniel Island School.