Lang/Hunter
04/18/23
The former president of Iowa City Pride who was under investigation for an alleged misuse of funds has pleaded guilty to a lesser charge and will pay restitution.
The Press-Citizen reports that 37-year-old Anthony Sivanthaphanith made a written plea to second-degree theft Monday and will be ordered to pay $35,732 in restitution to Iowa City Pride. He was originally charged with 1st degree theft.
Sivanthaphanith reportedly admitted to investigators that he spent $8,000 in Pride funds without the board of directors’ knowledge between May and November 2021 when he was both president and treasurer. He allegedly ordered checks in his name drawn on the Pride account for which he had been issued a debit card as the treasurer.
The board, working in conjunction with the police, was able to tie the expenditures to Sivanthaphanith’s social media posts about his travels.
Police say expenditures included “transactions for hotels, gas, food, airlines, entertainment, retail and even personal bills.” The purchases reportedly occurred in at least seven states, plus several locations throughout Iowa.
The organization learned of the missing money in the fall of 2021 after a check another member wrote bounced.
Sivanthaphanith reportedly paid $20,000 of the restitution when he made his written plea. A sentencing date has not yet been set.