Florida A&M athletic director Angela Suggs was arrested on Monday after she allegedly stole thousands of dollars from her former job with a corporate credit card.
Suggs turned herself in to the Leon County Jail on Monday, though she was later released on bond, according to The Associated Press. She is facing several charges, including felony grand theft and felony scheme to defraud. She was also charged with four counts of false claims on travel vouchers, which are misdemeanors in the state of Florida.
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Officials said that Suggs used a corporate credit card for personal use and stole more than $24,000 at her previous job. Suggs allegedly made wire transfers, cash withdrawals and personal purchases at casinos during business trips while she was the CEO of the Florida Sports Foundation. An investigation was launched last fall, and an audit also revealed that Suggs allegedly falsified travel vouchers by filing the unauthorized charges as meals or claimed they were accidents. She also reportedly failed to completely repay the Florida Sports Foundation for her personal expenses.
Suggs, a Florida A&M graduate, was hired officially as the university’s athletic director last fall after a nearly seven-year run with the Florida Sports Foundation. Among other things, Suggs hired former NBA player and Heisman Trophy winner Charlie Ward as the program’s next men’s basketball coach in April. The Rattlers went 14-17 last season in the SWAC, and they’ve not been to the NCAA tournament in nearly two decades.
“Florida A&M University is aware of the allegations involving our athletics director, Angela Suggs, while she was working with a former employer,” interim president Timothy Beard said in a statement, via WTXL. “While the matter is unrelated to her duties as an employee at FAMU, we are monitoring the situation and will respond in the future as appropriate.”
