JOHN WATERS CONVICTED ON FRAUD AND TAX EVASION CHARGES

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JOHN WATERS CONVICTED ON FRAUD AND TAX EVASION CHARGES

http://www.reporter.am/go/article/2014-03-12-john-waters-convicted-on-fraud-and-tax-evasion-charges
Published: Wednesday March 12, 2014

The federal courthouse in Minneapolis. . USCourts.gov

MINNEAPOLIS - A jury in Minneapolis found John Waters guilty of
embezzling $4.2 million from the philanthropist, Gerard Cafesjian. The
March 5 criminal conviction included a total of 25 charges of mail
and wire fraud and tax evasion.

According to Pioneer Press reporting, the prosecution, led by Assistant
U.S. Attorney William Otteson called the ruling "a just result." Over
the course of five-day trial, prosecutors presented 13 witnesses
and introduced some 250 exhibits in support of the case against
Waters. Only Waters testified for the defense. The conviction includes
15 charges of wire fraud, four counts of mail fraud, three counts of
income tax evasion and three counts of filing false tax returns.

Waters began to work for Cafesjian, when he was an executive
vice-president at West Publishing in St. Paul, Minn., in the
mid-1990s. After the company was sold and Cafesjian retired,
Waters began to work for Gerard Cafesjian and the Cafesjian Family
Foundation. Financial irregularities were first discovered by CFF
staff after Waters quit the organization in 2009. A subsequent
investigation identified multiple unauthorized transfers of moneys
to Waters' private accounts.

A businessman and philanthropist, Cafesjian contributed many millions
of dollars for art and development projects in Armenia and the United
States. His signature project, the Cafesjian Center for the Arts, is
one of the major attractions in Armenia's capital, Yerevan. Cafesjian
received accolades and recognition from both U.S. and Armenian
institutions, including the Ellis Island Medal of Honor in 2000 and
COAF Save a Generation Award in 2010. He passed away last September
at the age of 88.

No sentencing date has yet been set in the criminal case.

A civil case launched against Waters by Cafesjian is still pending.