The former Fresno Arts Council employee at the center of the Measure P embezzlement scandal will plead guilty to federal wire fraud as part of a deal with prosecutors.
The plea agreement for ex-Arts Council employee Suliana Caldwell was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California last Tuesday.
The backstory: Caldwell’s name quickly emerged after Fresno city officials revealed in early February that $1.5 million in Measure P funds had been embezzled.
The money was given to the Arts Council to distribute for competitive grants intended to expand access to arts in Fresno.
Longtime Arts Council leader Lilia Gonzales-Chavez has since left the organization and has been replaced by Andrea Mele in the interim.
The big picture: Caldwell admitted in her plea that she embezzled $1.8 million from the Arts Council, a greater number than had been previously reported. She has agreed to pay the money back in restitution.
Court documents reveal that Caldwell began her embezzlement scheme in June 2022 by transferring money from Arts Council bank accounts to her bank account and her PayPal account.
She admitted to using the money at local casinos and to pay for vacations, among other uses.
Driving the news: Caldwell hid the scheme for over three years by altering financial reports that she submitted to her bosses and to the city and county.
She confessed her crimes to the Fresno Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation on March 26.
What we’re watching: Caldwell is scheduled to plead guilty on April 20, with sentencing likely to follow in the months after.
She faces a maximum of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, although federal prosecutors will recommend a sentence of three years of supervised release and full restitution, as part of the plea deal.