Employee embezzled $12.8 million from a nonprofit; spent most of it on adult website.

[left-of-center2012]

Ralph Puglisi had been embezzling millions of dollars for years when he decided to try a new trick: laundering money through the pornographic website profile of a relative’s fiancée, investigators found.

With the millions he stole, Puglisi renovated his house, covered rent for one of his parents, paid for a relative’s wedding expenses, traveled, chartered yachts and bought land on St. John in the U.S. Virgin Islands, investigators found. But higher-ups at the nonprofit where Puglisi worked began digging into ballooning expenses. It didn’t take long to unearth what he had been hiding.

Puglisi, 59, who was a manager at a nonprofit tied to the University of South Florida’s medical system, admitted he stole at least $12.8 million over a six-year period, according to court records filed in the U.S. District Court in Tampa. He was working as an accounts manager for the University Medical Services Association, which pays for the operation of USF’s sprawling medical system.
An investigation commissioned by USF officials found he may have stolen upward of $15 million.

As part of his plea agreement, Puglisi agreed to pay back at least $12.8 million that he stole. He faces a prison sentence of up to 20 years when he’s sentenced at a later court hearing.

https://www.post-gazette.com/news/crime-courts/2021/08/17/usf-nonprofit-medical-system-employee-embezzles-millions-adult-website-mygirlfund-ralph-puglisi-university-of-south-florida/stories/202108170085

[hibbing]

1. 6 years

I'm no accountant, but I always find these cases interesting when the crime is being committed over years and no one notices. You would think some red flags would have been raised earlier than six years in.

Peace

[North Shore Chicago]

2. No upper management

or audit team observing all the shenanigans?

This guy must have thought he was Teflon getting away with this for so long.

[hunter]

9. Maybe they were offering free services to anyone who might be suspicious.

Plenty of speakeasies and bordellos stayed open by offering the cops freebies.

Good old boy culture is strong.

[left-of-center2012]

3. Huh ?

“Despite internal and external audits, no one detected Puglisi’s actions until leaders at USF Health questioned ($12.8 million) rising costs"

[uponit7771]

10. RIGHT !?!?

[wyn borkins]

4. Where Were the 'Cash-Watchers' (?)

Similar to what may (?) have happened in Afghanistan, perhaps many 'others' were also 'in-on-the-scam' as well. That amount of money disappearing from a 'non-profit' organization over a very long period of time simply does not bode well for the 'Cash-Watchers'.

[viva la]

5. He says he'll pay it back?

How?

[Chainfire]

7. Perhaps he invested wisely....

[Chainfire]

6. The problem with these types of folks is that they do not believe in auditors.

Sooner or later embezzlement is going to get found out. The criminals big problem is that they don't know how to quit and disappear when they are ahead. I suspect it is more about getting away with it, than the money itself.

What keeps me honest is that I know, that if I did it, I would be caught! Having to explain to my family why dad was going to be unavailable for then for the next few years is just not something I would want to do.

[Greybnk48]

8. He was probably laundering the money

through the porn site.

[JesterCS]

11. for that much money he could have

just bought a trophy wife. why waste it on online women...... lol

[Mr.Bill]

12. I thought

porn was free on the internet.

[csziggy]

13. He was splitting the money with some of the site operators

Accounting manager who handled USF health care funds embezzled millions
By Divya Kumar
Published Aug. 12
Updated Aug. 13

>>>>>

About 22,000 interactions with the site were recorded, and a search found that Puglisi frequented the profile of a woman on the site believed to be his stepson’s fiancée, the report said. It said an Excel document was found that showed the two split $743,968 in profits, with 60 percent of the money going to Puglisi.

The nature of the transactions and other details were unclear, but the report stated: “The investigative team developed a working theory that Puglisi worked either with the principals of the adult content provider, or with the female profiles of the adult content provider in order to financially benefit from funds charged to the UMSA credit card.”

The website allows users to buy credits and then donate them to the people with profiles on the site, who can “cash out” those credits for real dollars at any point. Puglisi visited the profile user believed to be his stepson’s fiancée more than 2,800 times over a two-year span, the report said.

It also stated that Puglisi frequented the profile of another woman based in Toronto and paid more than $22,486 in airline tickets for her and friends to fly to Orlando. Another $43,662 was spent at Disney World Resorts, the report said.

More, including other excessive spending for personal expenses: https://www.tampabay.com/news/education/2021/08/12/accounting-manager-who-handled-usf-health-care-funds-embezzled-millions/