The Tallahassee Police Department has made an arrest in connection to the 2024 fraud investigation of the reported theft of more than $1 million from City Hall — a “cybercrime” carried out by someone posing to be a city vendor.
Richard N. Golding of Buffalo Grove, Illinois has been charged with two counts of wire fraud, money laundering, grand theft and attempted grand theft.
According to a press release from TPD, the investigation uncovered a network of coordinated deceit that digitally crossed state and international lines. It also revealed that the arrestee allegedly unlawfully and willingly participated in accruing $2.35 million in stolen funds and facilitated the international transfer of funds to a Mexican bank for an unidentified criminal network.
The city of Tallahassee was one of multiple victims.
“No crime is faceless. Someone sought to harm each member of this community by stealing public dollars. Thanks to the expertise, tireless dedication and persistence of our investigators, $1.4 million dollars was recovered for the citizens of Tallahassee, and justice will be served,” Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell said. “This case is another example of TPD’s commitment to solving crimes and holding criminals accountable under the law.”
How was the money stolen from the City of Tallahassee?
Officials have offered few details about the case and court records were not immediately available on the arrest.
City Commissioner Curtis Richardson told the Tallahassee Democrat at the time on March 19, 2024, that the theft was carried out by someone pretending to pose as a city vendor and that a similar crime had occurred in Fort Lauderdale. He said City Manager Reese Goad called him to brief him about the matter.
“Apparently, the person who received the money posed themselves as the vendor that legitimately should have been paid, and from the little bit of information I’ve gotten so far from the city manager, that’s how this all transpired.”
Richardson said Goad told him that in the Fort Lauderdale case, the city got its money back.
“We’re hoping that under our circumstances as well, we’ll get the money back,” Richardson said. “They are on top of it, and staff is working feverishly to get it resolved.”
Police point to ‘complexity of the investigation’ in tracking the money trail
The arrest comes just days after the Tallahassee-based watchdog group, Citizens for Government Accountability, gathered in front of City Hall where they called upon the FBI and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement to takeover the investigation.
The group, lead by CEO Dot Inman-Johnson, said that the investigation should be passed off to an independent third-party, believing Chief Lawrence Revell to be the wrong person for the job. FDLE later declined to investigate and the arrest was announced two days later.
The release says cracking the case required coordination with other agencies and jurisdictions across several states as TPD detectives conducted thorough reviews of financial records and other evidence to track the funds and identify suspects
“The complexity of the investigation and the nature of the scheme created numerous investigative leads beyond the city of Tallahassee, crossing state and international jurisdictions that had to be meticulously analyzed and considered,” staff wrote. “Detectives worked diligently to ensure evidence was lawfully obtained, thoroughly vetted, and sufficient to support a strong, prosecutable case and uphold the integrity of the judicial process.”
Through the combined efforts of multiple agencies including the Tallahassee Police Department, State Attorney Jack Campbell’s Office, United States Secret Service, and the U.S. Marshals Service this investigation resulted in an arrest and financial recovery on behalf of the citizens of Tallahassee.
Arianna Otero is the trending and breaking news reporter for the Tallahassee Democrat. Contact her via email at AOtero@tallahassee.com and follow her on X: @ari_v_otero.
This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Tallahassee Police make arrest in $1 million fraud theft of city funds