A former diversity manager at Facebook and Nike has been sentenced to five years and three months in prison for stealing over $5 million from the companies, which was intended for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives.
CNBC reports that Barbara Furlow-Smiles, a 38-year-old Georgia resident, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in December after being accused of stealing more than $4.9 million from Facebook and an additional six-figure sum from Nike. According to Atlanta U.S. Attorney Ryan Buchanan, Furlow-Smiles used a scheme involving “fraudulent vendors, fake invoices, and cash kickbacks” to siphon funds from Facebook, where she worked as a lead strategist and global head of employee resource groups and diversity engagement.
After being fired from Facebook in mid-2021, Furlow-Smiles continued her fraudulent activities at Nike, where she worked as a senior director of diversity, equity & inclusion from November 2021 to February 2023. Prosecutors said she executed a similar theft scheme while at Nike.
The stolen money was used by Furlow-Smiles to fund a luxurious lifestyle in California, Georgia, and Oregon. In addition to the prison sentence, District Judge Steven Grimberg ordered her to pay restitution of $4.98 million to Facebook and $121,000 to Nike.
May 17, 2024, 01:46 PM
HRK
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Originally posted by chellim1:
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Originally posted by Rey HRH: I really can’t see how such fraud could occur now in any corporation now a days given Sarbanes Oxley.
The article doesn't say how she got caught. Perhaps it was internal controls and it was the company that brought in the FBI?
Very likely someone in the food chain didn't get enough of what they thought they should, or got cut out after making her mad, and she got outed...
