Guilty Plea in Embezzlement Case (Alpha Tau Omega)

[exlurker]

A former professor at Auburn has pleaded guilty to embezzling about $940,000 from Alpha Tau Omega, according to a short article on the Montgomery, Alabama, paper's web site:

http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/...708070326/1009

That sounds like a lot of money to me, but then I grew up in a middle-class family.

[BabyPiNK_FL]

That's amazing. This has happened to chapters that I know and no one has ever been charged with anything. (Why? I don't know but...) I'm glad that they aren't taking this sitting down.

[Zillini]

Good grief! I find this absolutely mind boggling. I hope this doesn't come across as blaming the victims, but how does someone steal almost a million dollars and nobody notices? Wasn't there any sort of internal audits or oversights in place? We have to account for every last cent that comes in and goes out.

[banditone]

That total is amazing. So blatant of him to think that would go unnoticed. Or maybe he didn't care... Who knows.

[exlurker]

Originally Posted by Zillini

Good grief! I find this absolutely mind boggling. I hope this doesn't come across as blaming the victims, but how does someone steal almost a million dollars and nobody notices? Wasn't there any sort of internal audits or oversights in place? We have to account for every last cent spent that comes in and goes out.

Hi Zillini: well, I don't know exactly how it was done, but a press release about the indictment -- this was long before the guilty plea -- has a general statement alleging that he used a real estate deal and other tactics to help get the money.

See:
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/alm/Press/...nt_lawing.html

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by Sperry

That's not that much money people...

It's a lot when it's not yours and you've stolen it from an organization which is otherwise dependent upon it!

And I'd say the same if it was $920.00, too.

[Kevin]

Originally Posted by Sperry

That's not that much money people...

So I take it that you're bragging about your wealth? Perhaps that's not how you mean this comment, but that's how you're coming off.

[Tom Earp]

Originally Posted by Sperry

That's not that much money people...

Sorry, but what life span do you live in?

That is almost 1 Million Dollars from one Chapter. That is a lot of money to any GLO HQ's!

If he is found guilty and I hope so, I am sure He will get probation and have to pay restitution. Yep, see if he gets the @ 1 Million back to the Chapter!

So, in the meantime they are out of that money and screwed.

[banditone]

The chapter should blow it on one gi-normous party.

... and call it the "Mt Vesuvius" party. Who's with me?

[Zillini]

Originally Posted by exlurker

Hi Zillini: well, I don't know exactly how it was done, but a press release about the indictment -- this was long before the guilty plea -- has a general statement alleging that he used a real estate deal and other tactics to help get the money.

See:
http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/alm/Press/...nt_lawing.html

Thanks for the link. It was very interesting.

From the above link:

The indictment further alleges that Lawing devised and implemented a series of lulling tactics designed to conceal the fraternity’s increasingly depleted funds. These tactics first included false assurances to other fraternity board members that the initial proceeds from the sale of the property had been prudently invested in a CD and a money market account. Later, Lawing allegedly falsely assured other members of the Board that a “nest egg” had been created in the form of a fraternity trust with the assistance of a local Auburn, Alabama attorney.

Interesting. I guess the lesson here is always check the bank records and never take someone's word for it.

The indictment also charges that Lawing failed to report this embezzled income on his and his wife’s 2002 and 2003 Federal Income Tax Returns.

LOL! Al Capone was busted on tax evasion charges too. I just have this hilarious mental picture of someone reporting $930,000 of embezzlement income on their tax returns. I don't think they issue W-2's for that.

[honeychile]

In the grand scheme of things, theft is theft. And, I believe, a felony.

[honeychile]

Originally Posted by Sperry

Your point?

You've just made it. One only has one character to lose.

[Zillini]

Originally Posted by Sperry

Also on the money issue, my point was that amount of money isn't a deathblow to a halfway decent chapter. Take FIJI at Auburn, they have 145 members. Dues are around $2,200 a semester, or $4,400 a year. Multiply that together, that's $638,000 a year, just in dues. So, $940,000 isn't all that much in the grand scheme of things.

But you failed to factor in that there are expenses that must be paid through out the year. It's not like that $638,000 is just extra cash lying around.

Using my own Chapter as an example, we set up our budget with a 5-10% surplus to cover any unexpected expenses. Whatever is left over gets put into savings for future long term expenditures like house renovations or major repairs. Losing almost $1 mill would take years to replace. It would delay many major projects. It might even force us to take out a loan if it were something critical that had to be done ASAP.