Branson man sentenced for $442K fraud scheme

A Branson man was sentenced yesterday for a $442,810 fraud scheme against his employer, Kansas City-based Clarkson Construction Co.

Rodney Tatum, 44, formerly of Kansas City, was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Fernando Gaitan to one year and three months in prison and ordered to pay restitution. Tatum paid $62,412 before leaving the hearing, according to a news release from the office of Tammy Dickinson, U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

The former director of information technology for the construction company, Tatum used the firm’s credit card to purchase equipment he later resold for personal profit. Employed by Clarkson from 1991 until a federal criminal complaint was filed Aug. 12, 2014, Tatum admitted he ordered hundreds of thousands of dollars of computer and communication equipment  – including 23 iPhones – between October 2013 and September 2014, according to the release.

Tatum pleaded guilty to mail fraud Oct. 27, 2014.
 
According to court documents, Tatum hid his fraud by bulk purchasing merchandise that could be used for his department and by faking invoices. He later spent the fraudulent money on luxury items, such as customized motorcycles, a boat, jet skis and a large motor home. Once found, Clarkson internally audited its inventory, resulting in a $436,243 loss for the company.

At Clarkson, Tatum earned a $120,000 salary. According to court documents, despite the income and embezzlement, he still incurred significant personal debt. Tatum used the fraudulent money to obtain custom work on a motorcycle at Alabama-based Stedman Motorsports and then falsely reported it as fraudulent activity. He made four payments to Stedman, then took back all payments with the fabricated story, resulting in a $6,567 loss for the company.