"Prosecutors allege that between 2019 and 2023, Ms. Westbrook engaged in unauthorized self-payments, improper cash withdrawals, and fraudulent reimbursement practices that diverted public funds for personal use. She faces charges including misappropriation of public funds, grand theft and filing false California tax returns."
"In the court documents filed this month, Westbrook is accused of buying luxury vehicles and making purchases at high-end retailers like Louis Vuitton and Neiman Marcus with the nonprofit's money. She led the organization, which ran a soup kitchen and collected millions in city contracts to shelter the homeless, for nearly two decades before her dismissal in 2023."
"Gwendolyn Westbrook, 71, raided the accounts of the United Council for Human Services while she had 'near-exclusive financial control' over the nonprofit serving homeless and low-income people. The charges are the latest in a long history of trouble for Westbrook and the United Council of Human Services."
Gwendolyn Westbrook, 71, former CEO of the United Council for Human Services in San Francisco, was charged with nine felonies for misappropriating public funds intended for homeless services. Prosecutors allege she exploited near-exclusive financial control over the nonprofit to conduct unauthorized self-payments, improper cash withdrawals, and fraudulent reimbursement schemes from 2019 to 2023, diverting over $1.2 million for personal use. Court documents indicate she purchased luxury vehicles and high-end retail items from stores like Louis Vuitton and Neiman Marcus using nonprofit funds. Westbrook led the organization for nearly two decades before dismissal in 2023. She faces charges including misappropriation of public funds, grand theft, and filing false tax returns.
#nonprofit-fraud #embezzlement #public-funds-misappropriation #homeless-services-charity #financial-crimes
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