RCSBA president charged with embezzlement

The president of the Riverside County School Board Association (RCSBA) was charged on June 19 with four felonies including embezzlement of public funds, according to the  Riverside County District Attorney’s Office.

William Clarence Newberry, 59, of Corona, has been charged with one count each of embezzlement of public funds and misappropriation of public funds, as well as two counts of grand theft, said the press release.

In November 2018, Tom Hunt, who had recently become treasurer of the SCSBA, told the District Attorney’s Office that he has found what he believed to be suspicious activity on the association account. The funds in the account are primarily dues paid by the 23 Riverside County school districts the association represents.

The DA’s Office initiated an investigation and, based on the evidence, found that between December 2013 and February 2017, Newberry used the RCSBA debit card without authorization to make personal purchases and pay personal bills. The amount totaled about $17,000.

Investigators also determined that, between March 2012 and July 2017, Newberry also used a checking account belonging to the Eleanor Roosevelt High School Climate Booster Club to pay personal bills and make retail purchases for personal items. The amount totaled about $23,000.

The case, RIF1902580, is being prosecuted by Deputy District Attorney Emily Hanks of the DA’s Public Integrity Team.

Newberry was elected to the Corona-Norco Unified School District Board in 2010. He lost his re-election bid in 2018.




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