PEEKSKILL, N.Y. -- The former executive director of Peekskill-based Guest House Community Services was sentenced Thursday to 24 months in jail for embezzling more than $300,000 in federal Medicaid funds.
Joseph Akumu, 53, was arrested and jailed Aug. 2010 following an extensive investigation by the New York State Commission on Quality of Care and Advocacy for Persons with Disabilities (CQC). In addition to the prison sentence, Akumu was ordered to repay the $300,000 that he stole.
Guest House serves children and adults with developmental disabilities by providing programs and services that are designed to improve the quality of their lives and their families' lives. Akumu was a founder of Guest House and served as its paid executive director until 2010.
Akumu entered his plea in White Plains Federal Courthouse in May, where he admitted the cover up of taking $132,000 worth of Medicaid checks made out to Guest House for himself.
In addition, the CQC probe found that he had used another $168,000 in Guest House funds for personal expenditures, including the use of a Guest House debit card to withdraw cash from ATMs in Kenya.
This involved more than just the theft of Medicaid funds by Mr. Akumu it involved the theft of resources and services from people with disabilities, said CQC Chairman Roger Bearden. The people under his care trusted him to act in their best interests and he let them down completely.
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