President of Philadelphia non-profit arrested for the theft of nearly $222,000 in taxpayer funds
Tuesday, May 25, 2010
May 21, 2010
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Attorney General Tom Corbett said that Harriet Garrett, 63, 8065 Fayette St., Philadelphia, is facing theft and criminal conspiracy charges. Also charged is her daughter Yvette Gimenez, 40, 5813 N. 6th St., Philadelphia.
Evidence and testimony regarding the alleged illegal activity was presented to a statewide investigating grand jury, which recommended the criminal charges being filed today.
Corbett said that Harriet Garrett was the President of C.U.E.S., which was a non-profit corporation that contracted with the Pennsylvania Department of Public Welfare (D.P.W.) through the Philadelphia Workforce Development Corporation (P.W.D.C.) to assist individuals with integration into the
workforce. Before heading up C.U.E.S., Garrett operated Next Generation, another non-profit corporation in Philadelphia.
Corbett said that in 2005, C.U.E.S. took over a D.P.W. contract that was previously held by Next Generation. As part of this contract, C.U.E.S. was supposed to provide training in medical assistance and medical billing to welfare recipients.
According to the grand jury, Garrett employed two of her daughters and her husband at C.U.E.S., which was in violation of the contract. Students complained that instruction was severely lacking and that they were not provided with the proper books and materials for the program.
The grand jury found that not only was C.U.E.S. not providing the services and instruction they were required to provide under their contract; but also that Garrett was using the resources of this organization to steal thousands of taxpayer dollars.
The charges state that in June 2005, Garrett transferred $85,000 in leftover program money from Next Generation's account to the C.U.E.S. account; however both contracts required that any leftover money was to be returned to P.W.D.C. Garrett never reported the transfer of this money and used about $35,000 of it to purchase a GMC Yukon Denali.
The grand jury also found that Garrett misappropriated taxpayer funds by overbilling for services, double-billing for books and by making inappropriate payments to family members, including paying $1,500 in 2006 and $3,000 in 2007 for her husband's back taxes, along with paying her daughter $3,000 for a class she never taught.
Garrett is charged with seven counts of theft by failure to make required disposition of funds and one count of criminal conspiracy.
Yvette Gimenez is charged with one count of theft by failure to make required disposition of funds and one count of criminal conspiracy.
The charges are all third-degree felonies, each carrying a maximum penalty of seven years in prison and a $15,000 fine.
The defendants were preliminarily arraigned before Dauphin County Magisterial District Judge Robert Jennings, III. Garrett was released on $25,000 bail; Gimenez was released on her own recognizance.