Former North Texas Teacher Accused Of Embezzling Tens Of Thousands
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ARLINGTON (CBSDFW.COM) - Authorities arrest a former Burleson ISD teacher for allegedly stealing more than $100,000 from a teacher's organization he helped fund.
Arlington police say Kevin Jacobson paid for vacations, gifts and living expenses on his colleagues' dime.
The funds belong to the Texas Law, Public Safety, Corrections and Security Teachers Association. Teachers pay yearly membership fees to be a part of the association and receive training they need to keep up with state certification requirements.
According to an arrest affidavit, unapproved expenses he made include a $290 dinner at Cattleman's Steakhouse and a $350 charge for wedding planner services. The teacher allegedly racked up bills of more than $3,400 at a number of grocery stores.
The theft allegedly occurred from January 2013 To July 2015. Detectives say Jacobson withdrew large sums of cash from the account, sometimes multiple times a day. He also allegedly frequently wrote checks to himself.
"What's unique about this case is the amount of money that was taken and that it took 2.5 years for someone to catch it," said Officer Zhivonni McDonnell.
A board member told detectives that when he confronted Jacobson, he received confusing financial reports full of outrageous expenses that had not been approved by the group.
The treasurer allegedly paid his son $2,000 to print 300 certificates from a home printer. Detectives say he paid his daughter $1,000 to prepare CDs and put them into paper sleeves.
"He was the treasurer of the association so he had access to the money so he was the only one with the credit card," said Officer McDonnell.
According to the affidavit, Jacobson explained he was "paying himself the salary he felt was owed to him," for planning yearly summer conferences for the last 3 years.
He insisted a previous board of directors had approved the compensation.
The organization's current president says the group's bylaws prevent members from taking a salary.
CBS 11 tried to speak with Jacobson many times. On two occasions he drove away when he spotted our camera.
The teacher refused to comment on the allegations and told us to contact his attorney.
We did reach out to his lawyer. Robin McCarty insisted his client was innocent and said he intended to prove that in court.
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