A former operations manager for Fresno Arts Council is the likely subject of an embezzlement investigation, according to city officials.
Suliana Caldwell, an ex-employee of Fresno Arts Council, is under investigation in connection to the missing $1.5 million of taxpayer funds, according to three city officials who spoke with The Bee on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the investigation.
The officials said the city administration was notified that Caldwell was a person of interest in this case by a Fresno Arts Council board member. As of Monday, she had not been arrested or charged with a crime.
Attempts to reach Caldwell for comment were unsuccessful. It was not immediately clear if anyone else is also under investigation.
Fresno Police Department Spokesperson Lt. Larry Bowlan said Monday evening that the agency could not confirm or provide a name. As of Thursday, the department had issued several search warrants, Bowlan said.
On Friday Feb. 6, Fresno Arts Council issued a statement that it was “the victim of unauthorized financial transactions resulting in the loss of agency funds.” The Arts Council then notified the city and local law enforcement and agency partners were made aware of the incident, which the nonprofit at the time called a “personnel issue that is currently under investigation.”
Fresno police said they are working with the FBI on the investigation.
“One individual did harm to our community, but the systems that we created did not create the environment for this program to succeed,” South Tower Land Trust Executive Director Kiel Lopez-Schmidt said in a City of Fresno Parks, Recreation and Arts Commission meeting Monday evening.
Caldwell no longer with Fresno Arts Council
Caldwell is still listed as the nonprofit’s operations manager on its website.
But an email sent to Caldwell’s work email had an automatic response that she’s no longer with the organization.
Email to Suliana Caldwell’s Fresno Arts Council email in February confirms she is no longer with the organization.
According to her LinkedIn page, Caldwell was the operations manager for Fresno Arts Council for more than four years.
Before that, she worked for United Way of Fresno and Madera counties, serving three years as an operations manager and then as a director of operations and administration from June 2020 to September 2021.
Prior to her roles in these community nonprofits, she worked for more than 17 years at Pitman Family Farms in several roles including customer service, database and dispatch, according to her LinkedIn page.
She also previously served as treasurer for the League of Mexican American Women, according to the organization’s 2022 tax filings.
This story was originally published February 23, 2026 at 7:46 PM.
The Fresno Bee
Melissa Montalvo is The Fresno Bee’s accountability reporter. Prior to this role, she covered Latino communities for The Fresno Bee as the part of the Central Valley News Collaborative. She also reported on labor, economy and poverty through newsroom partnerships between The Fresno Bee, Fresnoland and CalMatters as a Report for America Corps member.