No wonder tall ships are short of money. CJB.

clive beasley wrote:
Date: Tue, 05 Jun 2007 08:17:49 -0400
From: clive beasley

OHHHHH MAN, we had booked the Wendler express, see below another
potential rogues hall of famer:

John S. Carter, of Osterville, defrauded the Independence Seaport
Museum in Philadelphia of $1.5 million.AP
By PATRICK WALTERS
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
June 05, 2007

PHILADELPHIA - The former director of the Independence Seaport Museum
pleaded guilty yesterday to charges that he defrauded the institution
out of $1.5 million and used the money to fund a lavish lifestyle.

John S. Carter, 57, of Osterville submitted false invoices to get the
maritime museum to pay for home improvements, artwork, jewelry,
electronics and even a root canal, among other personal expenditures,
federal authorities said.
Ill-gotten gains

John S. Carter allegedly spent museum funds on:

* A carriage house and other improvements to his Cape Cod property
* A wooden eagle
* A 19th-century narwhal tusk
* Artwork
* Jewelry
* Electronics
* A root canal

He pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge R. Barclay Surrick to two
counts of mail fraud and one count of tax evasion.

Museum officials remain confounded over what led Carter to use the
institution as his personal piggy bank, although some wondered if he
simply spent too much time with people who had lots of money and owned
beautiful yachts.

"Obviously, his appetite was greater than his means," said Peter
McCausland, chairman of the museum's board. "During the last few
years, he was more irritable than he was earlier."

Carter served as museum president for 17 years before being fired last
year. The museum, located along the Delaware River waterfront, owns
the Spanish-American War cruiser USS Olympia and the World War II-era
submarine USS Becuna.

In a lawsuit filed against Carter in Massachusetts in January, museum
officials accused him of defrauding the institution of $2.4 million.

Museum officials say the misuse of funds dated back to 1997.

Prosecutors said Carter spent more than $335,000 in museum funds to
build a carriage house next to his Cape Cod home and make other
property improvements. He also used about $50,000 in museum funds to
buy a wooden eagle that once decorated an old riverboat and a 19th-
century narwhal tusk, authorities said.

Carter's attorney called his client a "decent and honorable citizen"
and said he did not understand what led him to break the law.

"He wants to get this episode behind him," lawyer Mark Cedrone said.
"Why he engaged in this conduct is a little befuddling."

Assistant U.S. Attorney John Pease said prosecutors will argue at
Carter's sentencing Sept. 4 that he should face between seven and nine
years in prison. Pease noted Carter tried to get another $1.1 million
when he forged the signatures of two museum board members to get a
life insurance policy.

"Even though he never got the (insurance) money, it was still a
crime," Pease said. "We're going to be fighting hard over that."

Cedrone said his client did forge the names, but that he was trying to
get something he actually could have gotten legally.

As part of the plea agreement, Carter also was ordered to pay
restitution.

Meanwhile, the museum is trying to get back on course by bringing back
donors and attempting to increase its endowment. McCausland said he
hopes to hire a new president by the end of the summer.

"We're taking steps to right the ship, if you will," he said.