The accusations against Taylor are pretty pathetic. Phillips' press release says Taylor embezzled cash from the Epilepsy Foundation of Kansas and Western Missouri and Westport Cooperative Services, and created two unauthorized credit card accounts for his visually impaired landlord.
And what did Taylor, 52, allegedly do with a lot of the stolen money? Pissed it away on slot machines at the Prairie Band Casino.
Phillips says Taylor, who was managing the day-to-day operations of the Epilepsy Foundation, embezzled $78,227 between 2007 and 2009 by diverting cash and check donations into an account he had created.
From the press release:
Taylor allegedly made dozens of large cash withdrawals from that bank account, including withdrawals made at Prairie Band Casino in Mayetta, Kan., 7th Street Casino in Kansas City, Kan., and Casino Queen in East St. Louis, Ill.
During the scheme, the indictment says, Taylor lost more than $72,000 playing the slot machines at the Prairie Band Casino. As a result, Taylor received more than $5,200 in complementary benefits from the casino, the indictment says, including travel and lodging.
He also allegedly got the foundation to spend $11,000 on a lobbying firm he created without telling the nonprofit that it was essentially shelling the cash out to its own employee. The company was paid but didn't do any work.
Taylor was fired from the Epilepsy Foundation and then moved on to Westport Cooperative Services. He allegedly didn't tell the nonprofit that he had been sent packing. Again, from the press release:
Taylor allegedly forged the signatures of two board members in order to open an unauthorized bank account under the name of Westport Cooperative Services on Oct. 9, 2009. Taylor deposited cash and at least 21 checks totaling at least $43,402 into this account. These funds allegedly constituted donations intended for Westport, but Taylor intercepted the funds and spent the money on himself, including at casinos and restaurants across the Kansas City metropolitan area. Taylor made cash withdrawals from ATMs at dozens of locations, including Harrah’s, Ameristar and Isle of Capri casinos.
According to the indictment, Taylor obtained a cell phone, which the board had not authorized, and paid $125 per month with Westport funds, causing a loss to Westport of approximately $1,000. The indictment also alleges that Taylor fraudulently authorized $2,408 in additional vacation pay for himself upon his resignation from Westport.
But, Phillips says, Taylor didn't stop ripping people off after he was forced out at WCS. He then allegedly opened two lines of credit under his landlord's name, identified as B.W., between March 30 and May 25, 2010. He is said to have piled up more than $5,000 in debt on those lines.
The grand total of charges against Taylor: two counts of wire fraud, 77 counts of bank fraud and three counts of aggravated identity theft.
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The fundamental issue however is how this guy with an alias got employed at 2 nonprofits -- the second after he was fired from the first for ripping it off. This needs some investigative reporting. Does this say something loud and clear about how nonprofits and other organizations conduct their affairs and handle fiduciary responsibilities. My opinion is that the persons who hired this creep, and the creep himself should both make restitution in full.
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