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nitpicker

(7,153 posts)
Fri May 5, 2017, 05:59 AM May 2017

CPA Sentenced to 6 years in Federal Prison for Embezzling $7.2 Million from Alanis Morissette,Others

https://www.justice.gov/usao-cdca/pr/cpa-sentenced-6-years-federal-prison-embezzling-72-million-alanis-morissette-and-other

Department of Justice
U.S. Attorney’s Office
Central District of California

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, May 3, 2017

CPA Sentenced to 6 years in Federal Prison for Embezzling $7.2 Million from Alanis Morissette and Other Celebrities

LOS ANGELES – A certified public accountant who was the business manager for singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette, as well as other well-known entertainment and sports figures, was sentenced today to six years in federal prison for stealing approximately $7.2 million from his clients. Jonathan Todd Schwartz, 48, a Westlake Village resident who was living in Agoura Hills at the time of the criminal conduct, was sentenced this evening by United States District Judge Dolly M. Gee. The sentencing follows Schwartz’s guilty pleas in February to wire fraud and tax fraud charges.

Schwartz was a member of GSO Business Management, LLC, a business management firm based in Sherman Oaks that provides financial guidance to high-net worth clients. Schwartz admitted in court that he stole his clients’ money and falsified account records to conceal the embezzlement.
(snip)

Schwartz admitted that between May 2010 and January 2014, he withdrew approximately $4.8 million belonging to Ms. Morissette without her knowledge or authorization. Schwartz further admitted that he falsely labeled the unauthorized cash withdrawals as “sundry/personal expenses” on the accounting records GSO maintained for Morissette. When confronted about the missing funds, Schwartz stated that the money was an investment in illegal marijuana “grow” businesses, a statement that Schwartz later admitted was false.
(snip)

Because of his position as a business manager, Schwartz had access to his clients’ bank accounts so he could pay their bills and obtain cash for them. As part of embezzlement scheme, Schwartz submitted cash-withdrawal requests to banks that were not authorized by his clients, and he either had the cash delivered to him or he picked up the money himself. Schwartz was able to conceal the embezzlements because the bank statements were sent to GSO, and not to the clients. GSO prepared monthly statements for the clients based on a ledger of expenses that GSO bookkeepers maintained, and those statements were false because Schwartz had provided false information to the bookkeepers and caused other pertinent information to be deleted from the monthly statements.
(snip)

In addition to the nearly $5 million stolen from Ms. Morissette, Schwartz admitted that he embezzled more than $1 million from another client and attempted to conceal the theft by claiming the cash withdrawals were used for renovations to the client’s home. Schwartz further admitted that he embezzled $737,500 from another client and forged that client’s signature on at least two cash receipts.
(snip)

Schwartz pleaded guilty to filing a false tax return for the year 2012 and admitted that he failed to report nearly $1 million in income that year. But Schwartz also admitted in court that he did not report any of the approximately $7.2 million he obtained through his embezzlement scheme to the IRS. As a result of the entire scheme, Schwartz acknowledges that he owes the IRS more than $1.7 million in federal income taxes.
(snip)

In addition to the six-year prison term, which will be followed by three years of supervised release, Judge Gee ordered Schwartz to pay $8,657,268 in restitution.
(snip)
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CPA Sentenced to 6 years in Federal Prison for Embezzling $7.2 Million from Alanis Morissette,Others (Original Post) nitpicker May 2017 OP
"I got one hand in your pocket" nt Blues Heron May 2017 #1
Haven't had my coffee... Ilsa May 2017 #2
Thanks Ilsa! Blues Heron May 2017 #3
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