COLUMBUS, Ohio – A former employee of a Huntington National Bank subsidiary faces 30 years in prison after pleading guilty to a charge that he embezzled more than $4 million of the company’s funds, federal prosecutors said.
Joseph Molnar, of Chillicothe, pleaded guilty one count of embezzlement from a financial institution and one count of willfully filing a false federal income tax return, according to a release from the office of U.S. Attorney Carter Stewart. Molnar, 50 also faces a fine of up to $1 million.
According to court documents, while he was a managing director for Huntington Community Development Corporation from 2005 to 2012, Molnar, 50, withdrew nearly $4.1 million which he claimed he was using to pay “placement” or “advisory fees” for property management companies as part of several housing property deals that had closed with Huntington National Bank.
Instead, Molnar put the money into his own accounts and failed to claim them as income on his tax returns, authorities said. Molnar’s 2009 income tax return claimed his adjusted gross income was $94,358, when in actuality his income was over $1.2 million, according to the allegations.
The documents claim Molnar underreported his income between 2008 and 2012 by a combined $3 million, leaving him owing $987,011 to the IRS.
Molnar was release on bond pending his sentencing.