A FORMER KING COUNTY, WASHINGTON FIRE OFFICIAL was arrested yesterday and charged with embezzling more than $1/2 million from his FD.
Grant Gaspard, 51, was the Assistant Chief of the South King Fire & Rescue Department in Federal Way until his resignation 11 days ago. After his arrest by FBI agents he was ordered by a magistrate to be held without bond until a hearing before a judge next Tuesday to determine if he can be bailed.
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Grant Gaspard
Gaspard’s duties with the department included the responsibility of chief financial officer. His world fell apart last month when a fire district employee noticed some discrepancies in the department’s accounts and several international phone calls charged to the FD. The fire chief, Allen D. Church immediately turned the information over to a law firm for investigation and they then called in the FBI. The agents believe Gaspard used phony invoices, fake work orders, and improper department credit card purchases to obtain cash and personal items.
Gaspard was placed on administrative leave July 14 and the 27-yr. employee resigned on July 28.
In an affidavit written by an agent with the FBI, Gaspard obtained about $330,000 from the department by approving purchase orders for nonexistent communications equipment from a company called Atwrx.
The payments were mailed to a private mailbox rented by Gaspard at a UPS store in Tumwater, and most of the checks were deposited into a bank account controlled by Gaspard.
In addition to the fake orders, investigators say Gaspard purchased hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of personal property with his department credit card and submitted falsified expense reports. His purchases allegedly included:
- Sony Blu-Ray player
- 60-inch Sony high-definition television
- Rifle scope
- Nikon D2X digital camera
- Nikon D3 digital camera
- Nikon D300 digital camera
- Thousands of dollars worth of camera lenses, memory cards and accessories
- High-end Apple desktop computer
- Two Apple MacBook laptop computers
- Apple MacMini computer
- Computer scanner
- Diesel generator
- Gun safe
- Sony HD camcorder
- Mackie speakers
- Computer hard drives
- Computer software
- Towing equipment and other truck parts
- Two TiVo video recorders
He has been formally charged with three counts of mail fraud and two counts of wire fraud, each punishable by up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The Seattle Times has the STORY.
South King Fire & Rescue WEBSITE.
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