Former Fresno Arts Council manager sentenced to nearly 3 years for embezzlement scheme

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A former Fresno Arts Council operations manager was sentenced Monday to 33 months in federal prison for embezzling $1.8 million from the organization, according to statements made during a hearing at the federal courthouse.

Suliana Caldwell appeared in court alongside family members to learn her sentence for what investigators described as a yearslong scheme to defraud the Fresno Arts Council.

According to investigators, Caldwell abused her position as operations manager by wiring money to herself approximately 300 times over more than four years. Prosecutors said she then falsified statements to conceal the thefts.

"This was all about the erosion of public trust. The city of Fresno was a victim of a criminal," said Georgeanne White, Fresno City Manager.

During the hearing, Caldwell became emotional and apologized for her conduct, telling the court, "I would just like to apologize for my actions..." and later stating that the crime and situation are "inexcusable."

Her attorney, Kevin Rooney, emphasized that Caldwell accepted responsibility for her actions.

"She admitted what she had done. She didn't try to delay this process. She accepted responsibility for it, and the judge imposed the sentence," Rooney said.

The judge described Caldwell's conduct as an "abuse of trust" and told her, "you stole from people who were counting on it."

White said the case has damaged confidence within the local arts community.

"There's a great amount of distrust among the artist community. They are very angry, and frankly, I'm angry too," White said.

During the proceedings, Rooney argued that Caldwell's gambling and alcohol addictions contributed to her actions, saying she "spiraled" and "went out of control." He acknowledged that she used some of the money to buy two vehicles and take her family on a trip to Las Vegas, but said she lost most of the funds in casinos.

Rooney also argued there were insufficient safeguards in place that could have prevented or detected the theft sooner, a claim the judge rejected.

"I think that that is frankly shameful," White said in response.

"Our employees did everything right in administering this contract. In fact, it was the fact that we have not received proper documentation that started this whole thing," White added.

Asked to elaborate on his argument, Rooney said: "Were proper procedures in place? No. She had actually created procedures that, ironically enough, would've resulted in the discovery of her thefts earlier had those procedures been followed."

According to court testimony, $563,302 has been returned to the Arts Council through PayPal. However, White said the city has not received any money.

"I'm pleased with what the judge ultimately sentenced Mrs. Caldwell to. We will continue to move forward, trying to work with the arts council to try and recoup the money that was stolen," White said.

The city and the Arts Council will continue efforts to recover the remaining funds, according to White.

Next month, a hearing is scheduled; it will focus on the restitution aspect of this case.

Now today, Caldwell was ordered to self-surrender in October. Her prison is not yet been decided.

She remains out of custody and unsupervised.

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