Kappa Alpha Psi Money Director Stole $3M, Blew it at Harrah’s

Posted on: November 11, 2021, 05:04h. 

Very last current on: November 11, 2021, 05:05h.

Philip Conneller

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The previous fiscal director of Kappa Alpha Psi, a single of America’s major Black college fraternities, has admitted to embezzling approximately $3 million from the firm, The Philadelphia Inquirer experiences.

Prosecutors say Curtis D. Anderson blew most of the income he stole at Harrah’s Philadelphia Casino & Racetrack.

According to court filings, the 58-12 months-outdated Claymont, Del. resident commenced siphoning revenue from the fraternity in June 2012. Anderson’s MO was simply to compose checks from the Kappa Alpha Psi check out guide to himself or to some others whose signatures he faked. He would then trade them for funds at Santander or Wells Fargo financial institutions.

In all, he is accused of cashing 78 bogus checks over a 6-year period.

Anderson pleaded guilty in the Pennsylvania Jap District Courtroom Tuesday to 4 counts of wire fraud and a person depend of aggravated id theft.

Caught Red Handed

Kappa Alpha Psi fired Anderson in December 2018 after Santander Lender alerted it about suspicious transactions.

In accordance to the Inquirer, when the Philadelphia-dependent fraternity’s govt director, John Burrell, and its then-president, Thomas Battles, attended a assembly at the department to focus on the irregularities, they saw Anderson ducking out of the lender. They identified as him on his cell cellphone and requested him to arrive again,

When confronted, Anderson gave a complete confession, telling his bosses that he was battling gambling and liquor addictions.

Historic Fraternity

The fraternity was launched in 1911 through the Jim Crow era by ten Black pupils of Indiana College Bloomington. At the time, Black learners had been seriously discriminated against, usually barred from attending university student functions and joining athletic teams, with the exception of track and subject.

Currently, it is a single of the most influential Black fraternities in The united states, with 125,000 customers and 700 undergraduate and alumni chapters in almost just about every state in the US, as properly as overseas. Considering the fact that its foundation, it has never restricted membership dependent on race, faith, or national origin.

Anderson experienced been at Kappa Alpha Psi for 30 years, performing his way up from bookmaker to economic director. Now, he faces up to 82 many years in jail and a probable high-quality of up to $1 million, even though a sentence of 5 or six many years is a a lot more likely consequence.  

“Embezzlement is theft, that is the bottom line,” explained US Attorney William M. McSwain in a statement. “Anderson held a senior situation of rely on with his employer, and allegedly used that entry to steal the identities of his colleagues and tens of millions of bucks. My office will continue to get the job done with our law enforcement companions to guard innocent businesses from getting victimized by this form of fraud.”