LOS ANGELES (CNS) – The ex-director of a now-closed Los Angeles anti-poverty agency — who was also a well-known fundraiser for former President Barack Obama — was sentenced today to six months behind bars and six months of home detention for embezzling money from the nonprofit.
Howard Slingerland, 54, of Studio City, was also ordered to pay $760,470 in fines and restitution and serve 200 hours of community service, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
Slingerland pleaded guilty in January to embezzling and misappropriating thousands of dollars from the federally funded Youth Policy Institute, which provided education, job training and other services to reduce youth poverty in Los Angeles.
From 1996 until he was fired in September 2019, Slingerland was president and CEO of the nonprofit and had check-signing authority over the agency’s bank accounts.
According to his plea agreement, Slingerland used at least $71,000 of YPI funds to be spent on personal expenses, including his property taxes, family dinners, a family member’s tutoring bills, and home computers and software.
In July 2019, Slingerland caused about $401,561 in funds YPI had received from a federal grant to be used for the unauthorized payment of YPI payroll. That same month, he also caused roughly $201,466 in federal grant money to be illegally used to pay off YPI’s credit card bill, including for expenses Slingerland had incurred, according to papers filed in Los Angeles federal court.
Slingerland further admitted that he underreported on his individual federal income tax returns more than $100,000 in income each year for the tax years 2015-18 by not reporting money he obtained from YPI including through the embezzlement.
Slingerland admitted to owing the U.S. Treasury a total of about $147,398 in unpaid taxes — not including penalties and interest — for these years.
Copyright 2023, City News Service, Inc.