CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) – A former payroll manager for a Chicago museum allegedly stole more than $2 million in museum funds over several years, federal prosecutors say.
Fifty-six-year-old Michael Maurello of Beach Park is accused of embezzling the money between 2007 and 2020, according to an indictment returned this week. He’s charged with two counts of wire fraud and two counts of bank fraud, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago said in a news release Friday.
Maurello allegedly caused the museum to deposit money into his personal bank account while reporting the payments as having been made to other employees or former employees. When an assistant controller asked him about a payment in January 2020, “Maurello falsely stated that the transaction had been a test of the payroll system,” prosecutors say.
Although the feds did not name the museum, the Chicago Tribune and CBS Chicago identify the employer as the Art Institute of Chicago.
"The cumulative loss was significant, but because of the length of time and manner in which it was taken, it did not impact decisions around staffing, payroll, scholarship funding, programming, or other financial aspects of the organization," the Art Institute said in a statement to CBS.
"We have implemented additional controls and procedures to help detect and prevent any future malfeasance and are recovering funds through insurance."
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