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an ex minneapolis chief executive embezzlement Over $330,000 including Donation Intends to award a prize for solving murder Of two children.
Jonathan Vanhagen, also alias James Sullivan, pleaded guilty on Monday mail fraud From December 2019 to June 2024. Vanhagen was president and chief executive of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce. Valley News Live reported,
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the United States Postal Inspection Service conducted an investigation, which found multiple instances of fraud after an internal financial investigation revealed a $500,000 budget deficit.
One of the most notable cases was the theft of $30,000 by Vanhagen used for a murder reward.
In May 2021, two children were killed and a third was injured in a series of shootings in North Minneapolis. In order to gain more information about the crime, Chamber Vanhagen donated $30,000 to Crime Stoppers Minnesota.
About a year after the donation, Vanhagen asked if the reward had been claimed. When Crimestoppers confirmed this had not happened, they requested its return and falsely stated that the chamber had “committed.” [its] “Investors will deploy resources into the North Minneapolis community.”
Vanhagen also asked Crimestoppers to send checks to his home address after telling him that was Chambers’ official location. The 42-year-old man later stored it for his personal use.
Another count of fraud occurred when, from December 2019 to April 2021, Vanhagen created a fictitious consulting company, Synergy Partners, and entered into three fraudulent consulting agreements with the Chamber.
VanHagen used the alias James Sullivan to sign contracts totaling $107,500, which cost the Chamber money.
In November 2020, Vanhagen also opened a $200,000 line of credit in the chamber’s name, and he withdrew $125,000 over the next year to transfer to Synergy Partners for personal expenses.
Prosecutors found in January 2022 that Vanhagen had used the chamber’s credit card to pay for a family vacation to Hawaii, which included more than $15,000 in first-class airfare and oceanfront hotel rooms.
The maximum penalty in fraud cases is 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Following Vanhagen’s resignation from the chamber in 2024, prosecutors said he again attempted to commit fraud.
In January 2025, he applied for a bank loan of $54,661, falsely claiming he earned $425,000 annually from a Minnesota restaurant holding company.
Minnesota Star Tribune Vanhagen faces 27 to 33 months in prison, must pay a total of $213,200 in restitution and will be fined between $10,000 and $95,000, the report said.
Vanhagen’s sentence will be read at a later date.