Concord Charter school founder pleads guilty to embezzling more than $73K from former school
Stephanie Alicea was the founder of the Capital City Public Charter School, which offered classes to several dozen students during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 school years. Alicea oversaw the school’s finances and day-to-day operations. Capital City received federal charter school grant funds, which we
CONCORD, NH – A Boscawen woman pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing over $73,000 in U.S. Department of Education funds from the former Capital City Public Charter School in Concord, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay McCormack announced Tuesday.
Stephanie Alicea, 49, pleaded guilty to one count of theft from a program receiving federal funds. U.S. District Court Chief Judge Landya B. McCafferty scheduled sentencing for January 6, 2025.
Alicea was the founder of the Capital City Public Charter School, which offered classes to several dozen students during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 school years. Alicea oversaw the school’s finances and day-to-day operations. Capital City received federal charter school grant funds, which were to be used solely for education-related expenses.
On Wednesday the NH Department of Education issued the following statement:
“The New Hampshire Department of Education (NHED), through its regular federal compliance monitoring work, was able to first discover a discrepancy in financial records related to this matter. We thank the U.S. Department of Education for rigorously investigating this situation and we are pleased to see this case come to a close. NHED takes its role and oversight of federal funds seriously, including its fiduciary responsibility and accountability for federal grants.”
In spring 2020, an external auditor detected irregularities with Capital City’s finances. Specifically, the auditor found that Alicea had spent some of the grant funds on expenses that were personal in nature, including gambling, dining, and travel. In total, Alicea stole $73,253.36 in federal grant funds from Capital City.
Capital City closed after the 2019-20 school year, surrendered its charter in February 2021, and declared bankruptcy in March 2021.
The charge of Theft from a Program Receiving Federal Funds provides for a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, up to 3 years of supervised release, and a fine of up to $250,000. Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case.
The U.S. Department of Education’s Office of Inspector General and Federal Bureau of Investigation led the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Alexander S. Chen is prosecuting the case.
