UTC employee accused of defrauding charitable fund
An employee of United Technologies Corp. faces federal charges of defrauding a companysponsored charitable f und of more t han $367,000.
Steven Kent Strange, 49, of Bailey, N.C., was arrested Wednesday. Employed by Collins Aerospace, a unit of UTC, in Wilson, N.C., he is accused of defrauding UTC’s Matching Gift Program by s ubmitting fraudulent records of donations, including fabricated cashiers checks that he and coworkers “purportedly made” to a foundation he established, according to federal law enforcement officials.
Between 2017 and 2019, UTC transferred approximately $ 367,000 in matching funds to the Housing Development Foundation of North Carolina, which Strange set up, law enforcement officials said. A review of the foundation’s bank records show a large portion of the foundation’s spending appears to be for personal items and services.
UTC’s Matching Gift Program matches an employee donation, up to $25,000 a year, to a charity. Strange established the Housing Development Foundation of North Carolina Inc. in 2008 and listed his residence at the principal office for the charity. Strange began working for Collins Aerospace in 2014.
He is charged with wire fraud, which carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
Strange did not immediately return a call to a number listed in his name. He was assigned a public defender and the public defender’s office on Thursday did not have information about the case immediately available.
Michele Quintaglie, a spokeswoman for UTC, said the company is aware of the allegation and investigation. The company alerted law enforcement and has been cooperating with authorities.
Federal law enforcement officials accuse Strange of falsely claiming to UTC that he and other employees made contributions to the Housing Development Foundation and seeking matching donations from UTC. The Farmingtonbased conglomerate that makes jet engines, aviation and aerospace components, elevators, heating and cooling equipment and other equipment paid St r ange $367,813 over two years, law enforcement officials said.
His claims of donations were “highly improbable” because they represented a large portion of his annual salary of about $90,000, officials said.
Stephen Singer can be reached at s s i nger@ courant.com.