Former CFO Charged with Stealing $1.2 Million, Spending Some of the Money on Women he Met Online

The former chief financial officer of Alotech Ltd. was charged with defrauding his former employer out of more than $1.2 million, said Steven M. Dettelbach, United States Attorney for the Northern District of Ohio, and Stephen D. Anthony, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Cleveland office.

A criminal information was filed in federal court charging John H.C. Black, 56, of Cleveland Heights, with one count of wire fraud.

Black spent more than $450,000 of the stolen money buying cars and making purchases at Louis Vuitton, Sak’s Fifth Avenue, Victoria’s Secret, Neiman Marcus and other stores for women that Black met on the web site www.seekingarrangements.com, according to the information.

“According to these charges, this defendant defrauded his employer and betrayed the trust of all those who worked at Alotech,” Dettelbach said. “The fact that he blew hundreds of thousands of dollars on lingerie, purses and shopping trips to Chicago for women he met online only adds insult to injury.”

“Buying female companionship with Alotech’s bank account was not what John Black was hired to do,” Anthony said. “Black is being held accountable for the numerous financial schemes he utilized to defraud the company that paid his salary.”

Black was employed as the CFO at Alotech from July 1, 2009, through Aug. 31, 2012. Alotech is headquartered in Brooklyn, Ohio, and is engaged in the manufacture, research and development of cast parts used by the military, auto industry and aerospace industry, among other applications, according to the information.

He began to use Alotech’s business checking account for personal expenditures in early 2011. Black also encouraged Alotech’s chief executive officer to obtain two corporate credit cards – one in Black’s name and one in the CEO’s name – to be used in case of emergency. Black also obtained a debit card without authorization of Alotech of the company’s CEO, according to the information.

Black began issuing multiple corporate checks for his personal benefit around early 2011, and withdrawing cash from ATMs with the unauthorized debit card, according to the information.

Around October 2011, Black met multiple women through the website www.seekingarrangements.com. The website purported to match younger females, approximately 20-30 years old, with rich, older men. The men agreed to provide the women with cash and gifts in exchange for their companionship, according to the information.

Between October 2011 and August 2012, Black provided cash and gifts with money that he fraudulently obtained from Alotech. These include multiple personal vacations to Chicago and numerous purchases there. This also includes purchases at Hannoush Jewelry, Macy’s.com, Neiman Marcus, Louis Vuitton, Sak’s Fifth Avenue and Victoria’s Secret, according to the information.

He also purchased two automobiles for one of the women, including an Audi, according to the information.

This indictment is the result of an investigation by Federal Bureau of Investigation. The case is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Derek Kleinmann.

If convicted, the defendant’s sentence will be determined by the court after a review of the federal sentencing guidelines and factors unique to the case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record (if any), the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.

An information is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt. A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.