ED WHITE - The Associated Press | Posted: Wednesday, November 22, 2006 11:00 pm
SALT LAKE CITY -- A couple with expertise in getting federal grants are accused of ripping off a suburban school district for years, living lavishly on millions of dollars collected through a secret company that supplied photocopies of books to struggling students, authorities said Wednesday.
Susan and John Ross, who were Davis School District employees in Farmington, are accused of pocketing $3.9 million of the $4.29 million paid by the district from January 2000 to May 2005, according to a 47-count indictment.
The charges -- mail fraud, money laundering, theft and copyright infringement -- cover that five-year period but the scheme actually began in 1985, U.S. Attorney Brett Tolman said.
"It's a case about greed, a case that sacrifices ... the integrity of our education system," Tolman said.
Separately, he announced a similar indictment against Susan Ross' secretary, Stella Smith, who is charged with reaping $338,189 by submitting phony invoices on behalf of a company named for her husband.
Susan Ross, 62, was the Davis district's director of federal programs and had wide discretion over federal grants awarded to schools.
Her husband, John, 64, was a grant specialist.
The Layton couple created a company called Notable Education Writing Services and used it to supply hundreds of books to the school district, according to the indictment.
The books were illegal photocopies of titles such as "Away We Go," "Yellow Fish Blue Fish," "A Soft Pillow for an Armadillo" and "Birds Fly, Bears Don't," the indictment said.
In one case, the district paid $93 for each copy of a book that was selling at stores for $13.22.
Tolman said the Rosses did not act alone. Book purchases were routed through a company run by two associates who took an 8 percent cut and funneled the rest of the money to the couple, according to the indictment.
The money came from a federal program that gives grants to districts to help low-income students who are struggling in school.
The scheme was uncovered in 2005 by Davis district auditors. Tolman and other investigators offered no explanation on how it was discovered or why the district didn't catch it years earlier.
Davis officials did not immediately return messages seeking comment.
The Rosses "were placed in great trust. These individuals developed sophistication," Tolman said.
The Rosses were not arrested and were told to appear in federal court Monday. Their attorney had no immediate comment. Smith's attorney did not immediately return a phone message seeking comment.
The indictment seeks to seize assets from the Rosses, including a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee, a 2006 Acura MDX, $240,000 paid to a home builder, a bank account with $381,000, and $24,000 in college savings accounts.
This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page B1.