NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A former Director of Finance at NYU was indicted on charges that allege she stole money from the state intended for special programs at the school and spent it on funding home renovations, including a swimming pool, and other personal expenses, prosecutors said Monday.
Cindy Tappe, of Westport, Connecticut, worked for NYU’s Metro Center as the Director of Finance and Administration. During her time there, the New York State Education Department awarded the university $23 million toward two programs, one of them helped school districts improve results for English language learners and the other addressed disproportionality in special education.
As part of an agreement to distribute the funds, a certain percentage of subcontractors on grant-related projects were to be given to certified minority and women owned businesses enterprises (MWBE). From 2012 to 2018, Tappe allegedly arranged for three contractors to receive the overwhelming majority of MWBE payments.
Tappe would draft fake invoices which would be pasted on the companies’ letterheads and had them submitted to NYU in order to justify the payments. In total, NYU paid the three companies about $3.527 million to provide services related to the grants, but no work to support the programs were actually provided, officials said.
The companies took between 3% and 6% of the invoice amounts and would send what was left to two bogus shell companies Tappe allegedly created: High Galaxy Inc. and PCM Group Inc. Some of the money was then used to pay actual grant-related expenses as well as to reimburse some NYU employees, court documents show.
Tappe was using the funds she swindled from the school, at least $660,000, on personal expenses. She allegedly used the money for home renovations, which included a new $80,000 swimming pool and other ordinary living expenses.
“Cindy Tappe used her high-ranking position at NYU to divert more than $660,000 in state funds to companies she controlled to fund a lavish lifestyle,” New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli, who is helping to prosecute this case, said. “I thank my Division of Investigations and the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for their work uncovering her wrongdoing and making her answer in court.”
Tappe was charged with money laundering, grand larceny, offering a false instrument for filling and falsifying business records.
Related
Related
Related
