Former Executive Of Bay Area Nonprofit Sentenced For Embezzlement Scheme: DOJ

OAKLAND, CA — A former nonprofit executive who stole more than half a million dollars from his Bay Area employer has been sentenced to just over two years in federal prison, according to the United States Attorney's Office.

Howard Solomon, 38, pleaded guilty in April to one count each of mail fraud and tax evasion for the tax year 2018 in connection with the years-long embezzlement scheme.

Federal prosecutors say that from 2017 to 2021, Solomon was the executive director of the East Oakland Boxing Association — a nonprofit that offers afterschool and summer programs, including boxing lessons and internships for East Oakland residents.

During his time as an executive director, Solomon transferred money from East Oakland Boxing Association's bank into his own without permission from any nonprofit board members, federal prosecutors said.

On one occasion, Solomon stole $50,000 that Steph and Ayesha Curry had donated to the nonprofit during an appearance on the Ellen DeGeneres Show, federal prosecutors said.

The 38-year-old used those stolen funds and donations to pay for vacations, Amazon purchases and a car, authorities said.

As part of a plea agreement with the United States Attorney's Office, Solomon admitted to embezzling $549,000 from the East Oakland Boxing Association. He also acknowledged that he had evaded taxes on the embezzled money by failing to report it as income, federal prosecutors said.

“Mr. Solomon’s embezzlement scheme not only victimized the East Oakland Boxing Association, but also deprived low-income, high-risk children in East Oakland of the internships, mentoring, and boxing programs the organization offers,” Linda Nguyen, Special Agent in Charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Oakland Field Office, said in a statement Wednesday. “While Mr. Solomon siphoned funds from a nonprofit to serve his own greed, IRS-CI agents expertly sifted through evidence and followed the money in pursuit of justice.”

Solomon was facing a maximum of 25 years in federal prison for the crimes, along with paying over $800,000 in restitution and half a million dollars in fines between the nonprofit and the IRS, according to federal prosecutors.

On Wednesday, a judge sentenced Solomon to two years and three months in prison, federal prosecutors said. He will also have to serve three years' probation following his prison sentence, authorities said.

“Howard Solomon used his position of trust to steal from kids and working families and threatened the very existence of an organization that is and must remain an important part of the East Oakland community," United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian said in a statement Wednesday. "With this sentence, he is rightly being held accountable for his unspeakable greed."