Former CFO of Visit Phila. charged with embezzlement

Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams on Wednesday charged the former chief financial officer of Visit Philadelphia with several counts of theft, including the embezzlement of $200,000 from the tourism agency.

Joyce Levitt, 61, former CFO of Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp. — now Visit Philadelphia — for several years used more than $200,000 in agency funds for personal expenses, including more than $19,000 for meals at high-end local restaurants and nearly $19,000 at wholesalers BJ's and Costco, according to the DA's office.

The former chief financial officer of Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corp. — now visit Philadelphia — for several years used more than $200,000 in GPTMC funds for personal expenses.

Williams on Wednesday charged Levitt with one count of theft by unlawful taking, one count of theft by deception, one count of theft receiving stolen property, 20 counts of forgery and one charge of access device for fraud for embezzling $200,000 from Visit Philadelphia.

Levitt — who resigned as CFO in February 2012 after nine years in the role — turned herself in on Wednesday. She will appear in court for a preliminary hearing once a date has been scheduled.

Levitt embezzled the funds from September 2005 to February 2012, according to the DA's office, and made full restitution before resigning in February 2012. A 2011 audit showed Levitt did not submit receipt to support purchases even when asked.

The amounts and dates of what was submitted did not match, leading auditors to conclude Levitt had tampered with them, according to the DA office.

"Visit Philadelphia appreciates the district attorney’s watchfulness and follow-up on our own discovery of the misappropriation through our own auditing procedures in 2012," President and CEO Meryl Levitz said.

After the discovery, Levitz said the agency took immediate action and turned to legal counsel, who advised Visit Philadelphia to make the organization "financially whole as soon as possible."

"We engaged experienced forensic auditors who determined the amount, and we were repaid in full five months after the discovery," Levitz said. "Throughout this process, we remained laser focused on our mission of building Greater Philadelphia’s image, driving visitation and boosting the economy."

The DA office began looking at the case in August 2014 and submitted it to the grand jury in January 2015. The office looked at more than 40 exhibits and heard from 20 witnesses.

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal