Stories related to: embezzlement

An Iowa man left a note in his kitchen and voice mail messages for friends and ex-colleagues apologizing before killing his wife and four young children, the Chicago Tribune reports. Steven Sueppel then killed himself in a fiery highway crash. The former bank executive was facing trial on embezzlement charges, and had admitted using half of the cash for cocaine. His messages said the shame was too much to bear. More »

A mother and her four children were found dead in their Iowa City home yesterday by police who received an anonymous tip, reports the Daily Iowan . Minutes later, cops responded to a nearby highway crash involving a car belonging to the father of the family, Stephen Sueppel. The dead driver remains unidentified due to severe burns. More »

One of the Republican Party's former top bureaucrats is suspected of embezzling up to $1 million from the party's campaign coffers, reports the Washington Post. The former National Republican Congressional Committee treasurer allegedly diverted money into his personal accounts for four years. The news is a tough hit for congressional Republicans in an election year. More »

Ex-newspaper mogul Conrad Black arrived at a Florida prison today to start his 6-and-1/2 year term for fraud and obstruction of justice, Reuters reports. He stayed mum as his wife drove him in, but is appealing the ruling that he helped bilk his former company of $6.1 million. "My book about this outrage is almost ready, so if I must go, I will not be going quietly," he wrote in a recent email. More »

A French magistrate launched a probe yesterday into claims that former President Jacques Chirac skimmed funds while in office, the Independent reports. Chirac, who turns 76 next week, is accused of using tax money to back friends and allies during his reign as mayor from 1977 to 1995. More accusations are said to follow against Chirac, the first former president to face a criminal probe.  More »

Boy band "svengali" Lou Pearlman is accused of scamming more than $300 million, but some ex-singers and moms say there's more: The 'NSync and Backstreet Boys mogul pressured his underage wannabe stars for sex. One ex-assistant has gone on record with Vanity Fair , saying, "There was one guy in every band—one sacrifice—who takes it for Lou." More »

Time must pay former Indonesian dictator Suharto $106 million over a 1999 article that defamed him, that country's highest court ruled today. The ruling, over a story that claimed Suharto stole some $73 billion during his bloody rule that spanned four decades, comes after lower courts twice ruled in Time's favor, the AP reports. More »