The man hired to audit a nursing home company's books and oversee its payroll has been arrested on charges that he pocketed more than $400,000 by writing checks to himself.
Authorities say David L. Gray, 54, of Brooksville, wrote about 100 checks to his firm during the two and a half years he handled the finances for Allegiance Properties One.
Allegiance Properties One runs several nursing homes, including Westbrooke Manor in Zephyrhills, The Cottages of Port Richey and others in Seminole County.
The company hired Gray's Brooksville-based firm, First Light Services, in November 2005 to handle its bookkeeping, according to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
Gray, who is not a certified public accountant according to the state Department of Business and Professional Regulation, earned a total of $86,000 for his auditing services.
In 2007, Allegiance Properties vice president Doug Klinowski started reviewing the stacks of checks that Gray presented for his signature. Until then, FDLE said, Klinowski only reviewed the dates and amounts of the payments, not the names of the people or businesses being paid.
Klinowski discovered unauthorized checks written to First Light Services. He confronted Gray, who said he was reimbursing himself for expenses made on Allegiance Properties' behalf. But Gray could not produce receipts for those expenses, FDLE said.
Klinowski, who could not be reached Wednesday, alerted Zephyrhills police, who brought in FDLE to investigate. That agency concluded Gray issued himself $416,713 beyond his contracted compensation.
Gray was arrested Tuesday and charged with grand theft.The number for his firm has been disconnected and attempts to reach his family Wednesday were unsuccessful.
If convicted, Gray could face a maximum of 30 years in prison.
Staff researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report. Helen Anne Travis can be reached at htravis@sptimes.com or (813) 435-7312.
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