The affidavit said Chaney used his American Express to donate $100,000 in 20 to the Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs, an Oklahoma City-based think tank that has supported school choice. Ron Sharp, who had called for an investigation into Epic in 2019. Among the candidates targeted by those dark-money groups was Sen. This time, much of the money was given to political action committees making independent expenditures to support or oppose candidates, Byrd said. The political giving, some paid using a student learning fund credit card, continued in the 2020 election cycle. “The state auditor’s office has fought to ensure that this situation was not swept under the rug, even when Harris and Chaney utilized tax dollars to silence and discredit the investigation and findings,” Byrd said. Included in the affidavit is a list of political donations made between 20 by Ben Harris, David Chaney and Josh Brock. She detailed more than $200,000 in political contributions to various candidates in the 20 elections, as well as money for public relations, lobbying and legal services to deflect questions about the school’s operations. “When Harris and Chaney and Brock created this complex scheme, which is the linking of nonprofits with for-profits to make money, it looks very similar to what was done in Oklahoma.”īyrd, who is running for reelection in the primary election on Tuesday, said she had expressed concerns publicly and privately about Epic’s business practices under its founders and former CFO. “Epic Youth Services received thousands of dollars in consulting fees for Oxford Prep from 2013 to 2016,” Byrd said. (Whitney Bryen/Oklahoma Watch)īyrd, in a press conference at the Capitol, said Epic used a similar management and business structure to conceal expenses at its California school, Oxford Prep, as it did in Oklahoma. 1, 2020, press conference where she released findings from one of those probes. State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd assisted with the criminal investigation into Epic’s co-founders and financial practices after several audits. The exact amount won’t be known until the Internal Revenue Service completes its own investigation. State Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd, whose office helped with the criminal investigation after several audits, said more than $55 million in public funds could have gone to the founders. Capital Gains, a lobbying firm run by Robert Stem, a longtime friend of Harris’, was paid more than $500,000. More than 50 times, Chaney, Harris and Brock transferred public funds from the learning fund account to the private bank account for Epic Youth Services, which was then used to pay a lobbying firm. The account received nearly $145 million between 20. Instead, they request a purchase from Epic and the school transfers the money to Epic Youth Services, which pays the vendor.Ĭhaney and Harris used a separate bank account to make learning fund purchases, and investigators found Chaney and Harris didn’t return unused learning fund dollars. Parents don’t receive the money directly. Whoops! There was an error and we couldn't process your subscription. Epic Co-Founders, Former CFO Arrested on Embezzlement, Racketeering Charges - Oklahoma Watch Close
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