Former Fresno Arts Council Manager Pleads Guilty in Measure P Theft. Sentencing in August

Former Fresno Arts Council manager Suliana Caldwell pled guilty Monday to stealing $1.8 million from the nonprofit, which included taxpayer money from Measure P.

The Department of Justice announced the plea, which came two weeks after a plea agreement from Caldwell detailing the crime.

A sentencing hearing will be on Aug. 10, when she could face up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, the announcement stated.

The FBI and Fresno Police Department are conducting the investigation, and assistant U.S. attorneys Cody Chapple and Joseph Barton are prosecuting the case.

Embezzlement Picked Up with Measure P Money

Between 2022 and 2026, Caldwell embezzled money that she used to gamble at local casinos, pay for vacations, and for other “improper personal expenses,” according to court documents

Her stealing increased after the Arts Council received its first injection of Measure P money, about $9.4 million, according to the plea agreement.

As operations manager, Caldwell oversaw the nonprofit’s bank accounts, including its payroll, grants, donations, and general finances. She disguised the withdrawals by falsifying financial documents, the announcement stated.

Missing money left a $1.5 million shortfall in the Measure P arts grant fund, Fresno Mayor Jerry Dyer said in a previous interview. The city will use general fund money to backfill that amount to make sure artists awaiting their grants are made whole.

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