(WWJ) - A former state of Michigan employee has been found guilty of embezzlement, according to the Michigan Attorney General.
64-year-old Farmington Hills resident Rufus Chappell, a former state of Michigan employee, was found guilty on Thursday of embezzlement, $20,000 to $50,000, which is a felony that carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison.
According to a statement from the Michigan AG’s Office, Chappell “misused state vehicles for personal use over weekends, holidays, and outside business hours, racking up unauthorized vehicle usage and mileage fees totaling $47,214.85 between August 2015 and January 2019.” Chappell was allowed to use state vehicles for work purposes only.
Chappell worked under the Department of Talent and Economic Development as an unemployment examiner with the Talent Investment Agency. He was supposed to use the vehicles to attend unemployment insurance benefit appeal hearings.
“We value integrity at the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency and we expect staff to be models of ethical behavior,” UIA Director Julia Dale said. “We have implemented ethics and conflict of interest policies, pursued bad actors who steal money from taxpayers, created a Legal and Compliance Bureau, and won national awards for our work in bringing criminals to justice. We won’t waver from our mission to serve Michigan’s residents with integrity and we will aggressively go after anyone who breaks the law while working for the agency.”
An investigation was launched when the State learned that Chappell’s driver’s license was suspended. It was then that the State “uncovered rampant and flagrant misuse.”
“This verdict sends a clear message that stealing from the State, and thereby the taxpayers, will not be tolerated,” Michigan Attorney Dana Nessel said. “My office will continue to investigate and prosecute misuses of state resources to ensure all public servants are held accountable for the responsible use of taxpayer-funded resources.”
The sentencing hearing is set for May 17 in Wayne County’s 3rd Circuit Court.