Jerry L. Akin, 60, formerly from Belleville, Illinois, was indicted by a federal grand jury in East St. Louis, Illinois, on Nov. 19, 2015, for two counts of wire fraud involving a scheme to embezzle funds from the doctor's office, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Illinois, Stephen R. Wigginton, announced today.
The indictment alleges that Jerry L. Akin charged personal purchases to the company's credit card that included Cardinal baseball season tickets, concert tickets, medical bills and personal travel expenses. The indictment further alleges that Akin paid personal credit card bills using the business checking account and that he attempted to conceal the payments by altering the payee of the checks in the business' QuickBooks accounting software. The indictment also alleges that he paid himself excess salary. If convicted, Akin faces a prison sentence of up to 40 years, a fine of up to $500,000, and up to 3 years supervised release.
An indictment is a formal charge against a defendant. Under the law, a defendant is presumed to be innocent of a charge until proved guilty beyond a reasonable doubt to the satisfaction of a jury.
The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, with the assistance of the doctor's office. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Norman R. Smith.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
