Chuck Vasquez pleads not guilty
Cathedral City’s mayor pro tem denied embezzlement chargestoday at his arraignment for allegedly spending funds from an employeecomputer loan program on himself.
Charles Frederick Vasquez, 58, is charged with three felony counts ofembezzlement by a public officer. He entered his not guilty plea at the LarsonJustice Center in Indio and is due back in court on Aug. 14.
Vasquez was arrested April 8 at his Cathedral City home, booked andfreed on $50,000 bond. If convicted, he faces up to six years behind bars.
Riverside County District Attorney’s Office spokesman John Hall has saidthe charges involve the alleged misuse of public funds via a Cathedral Cityprogram that loans money to city employees and council members to buy desktopcomputers, laptops or tablets.
Loans are made at 6 percent interest, and employees can pay forequipment through payroll deductions. Employees get an invoice or price quotefrom a vendor and are then given a city check to use for the purchase, Hallsaid.
Investigators determined that from August 2011 through December 2012,Vasquez “did not properly use the program and instead misappropriated cityfunds for personal purchases,” Hall alleged.
He allegedly used part of the funds for computer purchases and part forunauthorized personal items.
In December 2012, he was given a city credit card so he could buy alaptop and a tablet, but he allegedly used it to buy more than $2,000 inprepaid MasterCard gift cards.
“On previous occasions, Vasquez submitted fraudulent invoices under theloan program and then used the loan proceeds to purchase unapproved personalitems in addition to some computer equipment,” Hall alleged.
An affidavit alleges Vasquez twice returned a computer or equipment andbought lower priced personal items, keeping the change.
He allegedly told district attorney’s Investigator Matthew Weinstein,who wrote the affidavit, that he didn’t use the money to buy a computer,“acknowledged his previous returns and exchanges and admitted he did notreturn remaining funds to the city.”
Cathedral City Mayor Kathy DeRosa said Vasquez was elected in 2005. Sheand City Manager Andy Hall referred questions to the district attorney’soffice.
