$40,000,000+: Detroit Riverfront Conservancy fires CFO amid financial investigation by FBI
$40,000,000+: Detroit Riverfront Conservancy fires CFO amid financial investigation by FBI
The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy fired embattled Chief Financial Officer William Smith on Friday.
More than USD$40,000,000.00. Vanished.
Smith was placed on unpaid leave in mid-May after discrepancies in financial statements were discovered in April. The nonprofit's board ordered investigations by the auditing firm, PwC, and the Honigman Law Firm. The group asked former U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider, who leads Honigman Law Firm's investigators, to bring evidence against Smith to Michigan State Police and request a criminal investigation. The FBI has since taken over the investigation because of its complexity.
According to the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy, the two independent investigations estimate the loss to the nonprofit to be more than $40 million.
Meanwhile, over at the Freep…
Free Press attempts to reach Smith or his attorney have been unsuccessful.
“Our investigation has revealed that Mr. Smith has embezzled significant sums of money from the DRFC and has converted DRFC funds to his own personal use," said a termination letter sent to Smith's attorney by former U.S. Attorney Matthew Schneider, who investigated with an outside law firm hired by the conservancy. "Mr. Smith’s unlawful conduct spans several years."
I realize no one is sneaking around with a big sack with a dollar sign printed on it but my crack research team (or is that "on crack research team") of flying monkeys hasn't yet unearthed the timeframe in which the $40M was allegedly embezzled.
Just in case you're wondering what exactly the Detroit Riverfront Conservancy is or does…
The Detroit Riverfront Conservancy (DRFC), a 501(c)(3) organization, is responsible for the establishment, improvement, operation, maintenance, security, programming and expansion of the Detroit RiverWalk and associated green spaces. Through its public/private partnerships, the DRFC will support the development of the riverfront district and facilitate community access to the waterfront.
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