Marcus May, founder and CEO of charter school management company Newpoint Education Partners, has been sentenced to 20 years for racketeering and fraud. We’ll have more later.
OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT FROM STATE ATTORNEY’s OFFICE:
State Attorney Bill Eddins announced that Marcus May, former owner of Charter School Management Company, Newpoint Education Partners, LLC was sentenced today to 20 years state prison and fined $5 million dollars.
Circuit Judge Thomas Dannheisser sentenced Mr. May, and described Mr. May’s conduct “a shocking pattern of pervasive theftâ€.
An Escambia County jury convicted Mr. May of two counts of Racketeering and one count of Organized Fraud after a four week trial in which prosecutors presented evidence from more than 100 witnesses and dozens of boxes of financial records and documents.
It is one of the first racketeering cases involving a charter schools management company brought in the State of Florida.
Inweekly reporter Duwayne Escobedo attended the sentencing. Here are his notes:
Marcus May, who founded the Newpoint Education Partners, was sentenced to 20 years in prison and ordered to pay $5,216,856.15 in restitution, as well as $93,357.73 in court costs, for his scheme to defraud taxpayers.
May wore handcuffs and an orange Escambia County jail jumpsuit and showed no emotion throughout the court proceeding.
Escambia County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Dannheisser blamed May and public school officials for the millions of public funding he was convicted of stealing. A jury found him guilty of two counts of racketeering and one count of organized fraud.
“He knew the bank guards were asleep and walked right into the vault and helped himself to millions,†said Dannheisser, who called the pattern of theft “shocking.â€
Assistant State Attorney Russ Edgar said children and taxpayers were the victim of May’s crimes.
“The education of our young shouldn’t be taken away for pure greed,†Edgar said.