FBI investigating former Sea Pines Resort VP accused of embezzling $1.4 million, official said

The FBI is investigating a former Sea Pines Resort executive accused of embezzling $1.4 million over 12 years, according to Beaufort County Sheriff's Office spokesperson Capt. Bob Bromage.

A lawsuit filed by the resort claims Jeffrey Kruse, the former vice president of food and beverage, made fraudulent payments to Destination Hospitality Group, a sham company he created. The suit claims Kruse created fake invoices and approved them, coding them in a way that the charges were not "detectable in a normal financial analysis of the books."

Don Wood, spokesperson for the FBI field office in Columbia, said he could not confirm or deny that the agency was investigating. Wood said such a response is "a general Department of Justice and FBI policy." According to the DOJ's website, an investigation is typically not confirmed until charges are publicly filed. The FBI's website says investigating corporate fraud is "one of the FBI's highest criminal priorities."

The alleged embezzlement has been traced to 2006, but the lawsuit notes records only go back to that year because of a system change. Fraudulent activity could have happened before that, the suit contends.

When asked about an FBI investigation, Karen Robertson of RobMark, a Savannah-based PR company representing the resort, said "we do not have anything new to share at this time."

Four attempts over two days to reach Kruse were unsuccessful.

Alexandra Benevento, an attorney with the Strom Law Firm, which has offices in South Carolina and Georgia, said she suspects the FBI is investigating because of the large amount of money involved.

And, she said, "the fact that the FBI is investigating means it's possible (that) if charges are brought, they'll be federal." Whether any potential charges are federal, and what law the person is found in violation of determines the penalties, she said.

The U.S. Sentencing Commission provides sentencing guidelines for federal crimes, she said.

According to the commission, If one is convicted of embezzlement, the "base offense level" carries a "maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years or more." However, that time period could be altered.

"The judge uses those guidelines as an advisory tool," Benevento said. "They would take into account the money involved and the person's prior criminal record."

A non-federal offense would carry a different penalty. In South Carolina, embezzlement is a felony, according to the state's code of laws. The state may impose fines and a prison sentence of up to ten years for someone convicted of embezzling $10,000 or more.

"The size of the fine is proportional to the amount of money embezzled, so these fines could be very significant if large sums of money were taken from the company," according to the Law Office of Jonathan M. Harvey's website, a South Carolina criminal defense attorney. "Usually all money must be paid back to the original owner."

A call to Harvey's office was not returned.

This story was originally published March 28, 2018 at 3:54 PM with the headline "FBI investigating former Sea Pines Resort VP accused of embezzling $1.4 million, official said."