The former CEO of Goodwill Sacramento, Richard Alan Abrusci, was arrested for allegedly stealing over $1 million from the organization. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California reported that a federal grand jury indicted the 45-year-old Abrusci, who had been in charge of Goodwill Sacramento Valley and Northern Nevada. The charges against him include nine counts of wire fraud, one count of aggravated identity theft, and three counts of monetary transactions with unlawful proceeds. At his initial court appearance, Abrusci pleaded not guilty and was released. The fraud was discovered through internal audits and an investigation initiated by Goodwill Sacramento, who then alerted authorities. While the impacted funds were not from donors, but rather state funding, the organization condemned the actions of their former CEO and emphasized their full cooperation with law enforcement. New policies and procedures have been implemented to prevent future incidents, under the leadership of a new CEO. According to the Department of Justice, Abrusci began working for Goodwill in 2014 and was officially CEO in 2016. He is accused of using false documents to move approximately $1.4 million to his fictitious business, Resolution Arrangement Services, between 2016 and 2021. This business was registered under a false name and linked to a bank account Abrusci had opened in 2008. Court documents also allege that Abrusci fraudulently used money from Goodwill and one of its subsidiaries to pay for nonexistent services such as IT consulting, call center management, and legal assistance. In reality, the services were never provided and the payments were used to enrich Abrusci. Goodwill Sacramento was first alerted to the fraud through an audit in 2021, which prompted the internal investigation. After Abrusci’s immediate termination, the organization reported the matter to the Sacramento County district attorney who then referred it to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. If convicted, Abrusci could face up to 20 years in prison for each wire fraud charge and up to 10 years for the other charges, along with substantial fines. Goodwill Sacramento, which runs 39 retail stores and 26 donation Xpress locations, expressed their disappointment and stated their commitment to preventing similar incidents in the future. The case is scheduled for a status conference on Feb. 8.
According to Goodwill spokesperson Sam Singer, the CEO’s actions were a betrayal of the organization’s values and they are urging federal prosecutors to fully pursue the serious allegations against him.
