NCCU employee pleaded guilty to embezzlement. Attorney said she was a ‘scapegoat.’
A former N.C. Central University employee was sentenced to up to nearly five years in state prison after pleading guilty to working with others to steal nearly $1 million from the school.
Kenya Ward, 46, pleaded guilty in Durham County court to conspiracy to embezzle more than $100,000 as part of a Feb. 5 plea agreement, according to court documents. She was sentenced to spend from three to nearly five years in prison.
From Jan. 8, 2019, to April 4, 2021, Ward took more than $900,200 from NCCU’s book store and food services department, according to court documents. The plea deal requires Ward, who held the position of analyst and office manager from July 2015 to June 2021, to pay the money back, according to court documents.
After university officials became aware of the embezzlement, they terminated the entire unit responsible for administering the funds, wrote university spokesperson Stephen W. Fusi in an email. Five people lost their jobs, he wrote.
“Comprehensive changes were made to the processes and procedures within the unit to ensure proper oversight, and new staff were brought in to implement these adjustments,” Fusi wrote.
Ward’s attorney Seth Blum, however, said he has concerns about the resolution of the case.
Blum told The News & Observer on Wednesday that Ward ended up being a “scapegoat” in a crime that one person couldn’t have committed on her own.
“There are undoubtedly a handful of other people who were involved in stealing a tremendous amount of money from a public institution who are at no risk of being punished and will never be punished,” he said.
In addition, there was no evidence that Ward benefited from the money, Blum said.
“It was never clear where the money went or who benefited from it,” he said.
Fusi declined to respond to Blum’s concerns.
Virginia Bridges covers criminal justice in the Triangle and across North Carolina for The News & Observer. Her work is produced with financial support from the nonprofit The Just Trust. The N&O maintains full editorial control of its journalism.
