‘One of the largest frauds against a small town in SC.’ Contractor steals $500K. Here’s how
A Spartanburg contractor admitted in court he stole more than $500,000 from the town of Pacolet intended for a renovation project he was working on, causing the town to run out of money and to finance operations with a loan.
Then, he admitted, he stole some of the loan.
Callis J. Anderson Jr.., 68, pleaded guilty to breach of trust, obtaining money or property under false pretenses and embezzlement, all felonies.
South Carolina Attorney General Alan Wilson called it “one of the largest frauds against a small town in South Carolina in years.”
Pacolet is in Spartanburg County and has a population of about 2,300 people.
Circuit Judge Daniel Martin sentenced Anderson to two 10-year sentences and a one-year sentence. All the sentences were suspended to five years of probation, provided he pays restitution of $115,000.
Anderson paid $60,000 of the restitution immediately.
The project was to transform a mill building that had been given to the town by Milliken Co. into a recreation and senior center. The town staged a fundraising effort and applied for grants for the project and hired Anderson to oversee the largest piece — renovating a cloth room to include a commercial kitchen.
Anderson never completed the project, Wilson said in a news release.
Anderson was a longtime resident of Spartanburg County, where his father was an ophthalmologist.
Pacolet Mayor Ned Camby called Anderson’s admission of guilt a “great day.”
“Callis Anderson — the man who stole the town of Pacolet’s hopes and dreams of a beautiful, welcoming, and special place for all its citizens, but especially its senior citizens, to get together and play, eat, and socialize, has been held accountable for what he did to our town.”
Wilson was quoted in the news release as saying, “Contractor and other white-collar fraud can be every bit as devastating as losses from other types of crimes. For small towns, the outcome is especially devastating because they have less public money and are disproportionately hurt by these schemes,” Wilson said in a news release.
