BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) - A former band director at Southern University in Louisiana has pleaded guilty to embezzling $30,000 from the school by submitting fraudulent expenses.
Nathan Haymer made the plea Wednesday afternoon, nearly four months after he was charged with federal program theft, news outlets reported.
Haymer, whose role included making purchases during the band’s trips to other cities and states, submitted 15 fraudulent invoices between November 2016 and March 2018, according to court documents. He is scheduled to be sentenced in January, and could face up to 10 years in prison, The Advocate reported.
A report released last year by Louisiana Legislative Auditor Daryl Purpera also said Haymer pocketed more than $293,000 from public funds owed to the school, and set up a collection system with an unauthorized third party to collect the money.
He was fired from his position in 2018, and has since paid the school nearly $34,000.
Defense Attorney Karl Bernard told the newspaper that he will reserve commenting on Haymer’s guilty plea.
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