FraudBaron.com

Volunteer Executive Director Jimmie Clark, who has not been charged by police, said in a March 12 letter to the organization’s board of directors that he has been taking money from the charity since 2003.

“I know that I have deceived you all for sometime now and I do ask for your forgiveness,” Clark wrote. “I have notified my wife, my parents and my in-laws of this matter and have asked for their forgiveness also.”

To read the letter, click here.

Clark, 33, of Watauga, Tenn., confirmed in a telephone interview Monday afternoon that he confessed to police.  “I will not be charged if I make restitution, they told me,” he said of police before cutting the interview short to return to work at UPS in Johnson City.

Detectives with the Bristol Virginia Police Department have been investigating since Wednesday. They, and Commonwealth’s Attorney Jerry Wolfe, have not returned calls for comment.

The program was created in 1927 by Woody Vance, then managing editor of the Bristol Herald Courier. Its mission is to provide gifts and food for children who might not otherwise have a Christmas.

The newspaper stopped overseeing Santa Pal in 1998, but continues to have close ties with the program, including a seat on the board held by Managing Editor J. Todd Foster, who attended his first board meeting just hours before Clark confessed on Wednesday.

The board’s president is Amy Christian, who is assistant to the newspaper’s publisher.

In a statement on Monday, Christian said, “On behalf of the board of directors, we are extremely disappointed, hurt and saddened by the choices Mr. Clark made. Despite the recent discovery, we remain committed to our mission: to enrich and make a difference in the lives of less fortunate local children by offering a variety of family-oriented programs and community support that builds a positive self-image and sense of belonging.”

The Herald Courier’s connection might have been the cause of Clark’s initial reaction when contacted by a reporter. “Y’all are actually going to write a story on this?” he asked. “Wow. Are you kidding? Wow.”Clark’s five-paragraph typed confession letter, which includes thoughts of suicide along with statements of  regret, came shortly after Santa Pal’s board questioned discrepancies in the charity’s financial records and began tracking bank transactions.

“For the past two years, I have not been able to sleep at night and have contemplated committing suicide on numerous occasions,” Clark wrote. “I truly do love this program and cannot believe that it has come to this. I am sorry for what I have done and will accept any consequence that comes with my actions ranging from incarceration to a lifetime of community service.”

Clark’s dual role as executive director and treasurer – allowed in Santa Pal’s bylaws – afforded him easy access to charity funds without supervision. Larger charities make sure different people play those roles as a safety net against embezzlement.

“You need some separation,” said Daniel Borochoff, head of Chicago-based charity watchdog American Institute of Philanthropy.

“If it’s the same person, it’s too easy. You’re just making it too tempting for him.”

Clark took over the leadership role in 2002. The year before he joined, toy company General Creation had partnered with the Herald Courier as one of the charity’s top sponsors. General Creation hired Clark specifically to oversee Santa Pal.

It was when General Creation filed for bankruptcy and folded the next year that Clark offered to stay with Santa Pal as a volunteer executive director.

“Since becoming the Volunteer Executive Director of Santa Pal, Inc., I have embezzled $75,000.00 of the organizations funds. When General Creation Toys filed bankruptcy and failed to pay the agreed upon salary of $20,000.00, I began to misappropriate the funds to help cover my personal bills,” Clark wrote in his confession.

Even though small charities have fewer employees to watch each other and guard against similar incidents of embezzlement, it’s still the board of directors’ job to peek over the shoulder of anyone handling the money, Borochoff said.

“It’s just so easy to steal from [a charity] ... that criminal elements are even targeting nonprofits,” he said.  Christian, in her statement, noted: “In retrospect, we placed complete trust in Mr. Clark as we were impressed with his willingness to volunteer at a time when funding for his position was eliminated through the bankruptcy of General Creations. Having had that trust violated, our only solace is in the fact that 296 needy children in the community still benefitted from the program this past year.”