By Editor,Eliot Force

Copyright dailymail

A highly-paid healthcare executive has admitted to stealing $4million from a nonprofit and spending the money on luxury items – including a golden golf cart.

Charmaine Gatlin, 52, defrauded the fundraising arm of Jackson Health System, a nonprofit that provides care to the residents of Miami-Dade County, for 10 years.

She was originally arrested in May and pleaded not guilty at the time.

Despite having a salary that ranged from $185,000 to $290,000, Gatlin defrauded the foundation she worked for out of at least $4.3million between 2014 and 2024.

She directed funds to herself, her relatives, or unrelated entities, rather than to Jackson Health System, according to the United States Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of Florida.

‘Jackson Health System and Jackson Health Foundation have worked closely with the government throughout the course of this investigation and will continue to support their efforts for the duration of this criminal case.’, CEO of Jackson Health System Carlos Migoya told Becker’s Hospital Review.

‘Stealing from a charity that supports a public hospital system is especially reprehensible because it directly impacts the sick, needy, and most vulnerable.’, the statement went on to say.

Gatlin approved roughly $2million in invoices from Georgia-based audiovisual company American Sound Design for services that were never rendered.

In exchange, the vendor paid her $1million in kickbacks which partially went towards Gatlin’s credit card bills.

The former COO coached the vendor, Yergan Jones, on how to falsify invoices, including for services that had already been donated to Jackson Health System.

The vendor was also directed to buy luxury items for Gatlin, including Louis Vuitton, Gucci and Apple products, in exchange for a continued business relationship with the foundation.

Jones pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud and now faces two to three years of prison as well as having to pay back the $2.1 million he illegally received from Gatlin’s scheme, according to the Miami Herald.

In one instance, Gatlin submitted a fraudulent invoice to pay for a $15,600 rose-gold colored golf cart which she had delivered to her home in Weston, an affluent suburb. Estimates on her house’s value range from $2.7 million to $3.4 million.

The prosecutor for the case, Elizabeth Young, charged Gatlin with 26 counts of wire fraud, five counts of money laundering and conspiracy.

The former COO was fired from Jackson Health Foundation in 2024 after internal reviews flagged her embezzlement. The organization quickly reported their findings to the FBI which led to her arrest in May.

Gatlin’s sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 25 before U.S. District Judge Beth Bloom. She faces up to 20 years in prison.

FBI Miami investigated the case with the assistance from the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s office.