Former KU Med Center administrative officer pleads guilty to embezzling over $500,000
A 49-year-old Lenexa man has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $500,000 from the University of Kansas Medical Center, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s office in Kansas.
Michael Tae Kim Ahlers, a former administrative officer for the Occupational Therapy Education Department at KU Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas, pleaded guilty to federal charges of bank fraud and filing a false tax return relating to the embezzlement scheme.
In the release, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Duston Slinkard said Ahlers abused his position and that his plea “should send a message that, no matter your position, you cannot profit illegally or violate the trust of the company who hires you.”
Ahlers embezzled the money over a six-year-period while taking steps to circumvent the university’s finance and audit department, David Talcott, acting special agent in charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation division in St. Louis. said in the release.
“This type of financial fraud is a felony offense that carries severe consequences and we are committed to protect the integrity of the tax system and innocent victims that suffer a monetary loss,” Talcott said.
The investigation into his embezzlement involved the U.S. Secret Service, the Internal Revenue Service, the Kansas Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
As the administrative officer, Ahlers was responsible for all administrative tasks and financial transactions for the Occupational Therapy Education Department. He allegedly stole the money between 2009 and 2015.
To conceal the embezzlement, Ahlers allegedly deposited funds into a credit union account rather than forwarding the funds to the Institutional Finance and Administration Department. This allowed him to avoid oversight.
Ahlers also created invoices outside the normal system, which allowed him to prevent others from learning about the credit union account and his use of it for personal gain.
Ahlers is scheduled to be sentence on May 13.
