San Francisco Man Faces Federal Charges For Embezzling More Than $1.2 Million From His Employers

Press Release

Law Firm CFO Used Stolen Money to Pay for Three Houses in California and Other Personal Expenses

SAN FRANCISCO - A federal grand jury has returned an indictment charging a San Francisco man with bank fraud and other crimes relating to a scheme in which he embezzled more than $1.2 million from his employers, local law firms.

U.S. Attorney Ismail J. Ramsey for the Northern District of California and FBI San Francisco Division Special Agent-in-Charge Robert K. Tripp made the announcement.

According to the indictment unsealed today, Tony Archuleta-Perkins, 48, started a non-profit organization called "Murrieta Valley High School 1994" (MVHS 1994), in 2013.

From 2017 to 2023, Archuleta-Perkins worked for two San Francisco law firms. He held various roles at the firms, eventually becoming Chief Financial Officer (CFO). As the CFO, Archuleta-Perkins was in a position of trust and had access to the law firms' end-to-end payments automation platform.

The indictment alleges that from at least May 2018 through December 2023, Archuleta-Perkins used the access he had as an employee in a position of trust at the law firms to cause the law firms to make false and fraudulent payments to MVHS 1994 that had not been authorized by the law firms' management and were not for any legitimate business purpose.

Once the stolen funds were in MVHS 1994's bank account, Archuleta-Perkins would sometimes directly issue payments to vendors and accounts for personal expenses that had nothing to do with the stated purposes of MVHS 1994 or the law firms. On other occasions, he wrote checks from MVHS 1994 to himself and deposited those checks into his personal bank account.

Additionally, on at least one occasion, Archuleta-Perkins falsely endorsed a $41,663.69 U.S. Treasury check made out to one of the law firms, deposited it into a bank account belonging to MVHS 1994 and then wrote himself a check for the same amount.

The indictment further alleges that Archuleta-Perkins used the stolen money for personal expenses, including payments on Best Buy and Home Depot credit cards, and towards the purchase, renovation, and improvement of at least three properties in California.

In sum, the indictment charges Archuleta-Perkins with eight counts of bank fraud, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1344(2), and five counts of engaging in monetary transactions in property derived from specified unlawful activity (otherwise known as money laundering), in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1957.

An indictment merely alleges that crimes have been committed, and all defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. If convicted, Archuleta-Perkins faces a maximum statutory sentence of 30 years in prison on each of the bank fraud counts and a maximum statutory sentence of 10 years in prison on each of the money laundering counts. Any sentence following conviction would be imposed by the court only after consideration of the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and the federal statute governing the imposition of a sentence, 18 U.S.C. § 3553.

Special Agents of the FBI arrested Archuleta-Perkins in San Francisco this morning. He subsequently appeared in federal court and was released pending trial on a $500,000 bond.

Archuleta-Perkins's next court appearance is scheduled on July 31, 2024 before United States District Judge Jacqueline Scott Corley.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Nikhil Bhagat is prosecuting the case with the assistance of Madeline Wachs. Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa H. Miller of the Justice Department's Criminal Division provided valuable assistance. The prosecution is the result of an investigation by the FBI.

Updated July 1, 2024