Former Indy Non-Profit IT Director Sentenced for Stealing Over $500K

60-year-old Michael Meenan of Indianapolis has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud.

INDIANAPOLIS — A former IT director for an Indianapolis-based non-profit has been sentenced for stealing nearly $550,000 from the organization.

Michael Meenan, 60, of Indianapolis, has been sentenced to 18 months in federal prison, followed by two years of supervised release, after pleading guilty to wire fraud. Meenan was also ordered to pay $543,521 in restitution.

According to court documents, Meenan served as the Director of Information Services for a non-profit organization in Indianapolis from 1999 to 2021. In that role, he was responsible for purchasing technology equipment using a company-issued credit card.

“Nonprofits are especially vulnerable to fraud because they often lack the resources to prevent or recover from financial losses,” said Tom Wheeler, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “The defendant, a trusted employee for more than 20 years, stole money meant to support the organization’s mission and betrayed colleagues who had relied on him for decades.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Indianapolis Field Office investigated this case. They said that starting in July 2007, Meenan started making personal purchases with the credit card, including buying DSLR cameras, lenses, cycling equipment, Apple and Southwest Airlines gift cards, and Amazon gift card balance reloads. He then used the reloaded balances to acquire additional photography and cycling items for his personal use.

A Fujifilm camera, a bottle of Nikka whisky, and two crystal glasses on a stone surface. — Source: U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Indiana

The FBI said Meenan would then hide the fraudulent transactions from management and accounts payable staff by creating doctored receipts, making the personal items appear as legitimate technology purchases.

In total, Meenan made about 1,173 unauthorized transactions using his employee credit card, resulting in a financial loss of $543,521.13 to the organization.

“When individuals entrusted with access to an organization’s resources use that position for personal gain, they undermine the trust placed in them and harm the people and communities those organizations serve,” said FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Timothy J. O’Malley. “The FBI is committed to investigating financial crimes and holding accountable those who abuse their positions for their own benefit.”