JOHNSON CITY, Texas — A former chief administrative officer of the City of Johnson City pled guilty Thursday to stealing City funds of at least $1.175 million.
According to the City, Anthony Michael Holland started stealing the funds in 2015 through automated clearing house and wire transfer transactions, and he used those funds for his own benefit, including the purchase of his residence in San Antonio.
The City said Holland hid his fraud efforts by recording the transactions as if they were legitimate City expenditures for office supplies and other goods and services.
Holland also recorded some transactions as payments to a fictitious company, “AMHS Inc.,” created a counterfeit invoice from a fictitious paving company and arranged for an individual to speak to the City auditor and pretend to work for the fictitious company, and crafted false and counterfeit email messages from a former City employee, according to a release.
Johnson City officials and staff uncovered Holland's thefts and referred their findings to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas and FBI for investigation and prosecution.
The City said it would continue to work with federal law enforcement officials on forfeiture and restitution matters to recover as much taxpayer money as possible.
“The City thanks all parties that brought forth justice in this matter, and it expresses its deepest gratitude to City residents and local business owners for their patience through this process, as the need for confidentiality over the past year was simultaneously necessary and difficult,” the City said in a press release.
Holland is expected to be sentenced in the next couple months.
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