WOODLAND — A Sept. 19 preliminary hearing date has been scheduled in the case of a Sacramento man accused of embezzling tens of thousands of dollars from a Davis after-school program.
Mark Roberts, 30, has pleaded not guilty to felony embezzlement and grand theft charges stemming from his alleged actions while working as chief operating officer for Davis Kids Klub — a private, nonprofit program that, in cooperation with the Davis Joint Unified School District, offers after-school programs and summer camps on local elementary school campuses.
Davis police arrested Roberts on March 22 following a five-month investigation into claims that he took under-the-table cash payments directly from parents and deposited them into his personal bank account over a four-year period. The parents told investigators they received discounts for paying for a year of services in advance.
The allegations arose in August 2016 after Roberts left DKK and started a similar after-school program, Everest Learning Academy, which ceased operations in April amid a state Department of Social Services investigation into unlicensed care.
DKK officials have said that no school district funds were misappropriated as part of the alleged embezzlement scheme, and the program has taken measures to avoid similar conduct in the future.
Yolo Superior Court Judge Daniel Maguire will preside over the September hearing, which will determine whether there is sufficient evidence for the case to proceed to trial.
— Reach Lauren Keene at lkeene@davisenterprise.net or 530-747-8048. Follow her on Twitter at @laurenkeene