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Fairfax County School Board Member Accused of Embezzlement
A member of the Fairfax County School Board in Virginia is facing a lawsuit from a local flight school, Blue Label Aviation, alleging that he misappropriated $175,000 for personal use.
According to the complaint, filed against Kyle McDaniel, who also serves as secretary and treasurer for Blue Label Aviation, the accusations specify that he charged personal expenses, entertainment costs, and campaign-related expenditures to a company credit card. These allegations have been reported by multiple news outlets including Fox 5 DC.
The lawsuit details that McDaniel initially returned a portion of the misappropriated funds after being confronted about the irregular expenses. However, it asserts that he subsequently continued to divert more money for his own benefit.
Specific allegations include expenditures on luxuries such as strip clubs and family vacations, as well as funneling some of the embezzled funds into his political campaign efforts.
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In a statement issued by Blue Label Aviation, the company claims that McDaniel exploited his official capacity to access credit cards and bank accounts. This misuse reportedly came to light in June when the flight school’s CEO, Timothy Fischer, confronted McDaniel about $120,000 in questionable charges. McDaniel admitted to his spending and repaid $50,000.
However, further scrutiny revealed that by December, he had allegedly increased his unauthorized charges, totaling around $160,000 in personal expenses. Following this discovery, McDaniel was given another chance to step down from his position in exchange for relinquishing company stock and returning the corporate credit cards. Despite requesting time to consult with a lawyer, he continued to rack up unauthorized charges before being terminated.
According to the lawsuit, Fischer observed ongoing, non-business-related expenses being charged to the company’s accounts, further complicating the situation.
The legal proceedings are seeking a total of $175,000 in damages, in addition to punitive damages amounting to $350,000. The lawsuit also requests that McDaniel relinquish his corporate credit cards and be removed from the company’s financial accounts.
In response to the lawsuit, McDaniel stated, “This is an ongoing business dispute between my former business partner and myself. I’m going to let this play out in the courts where I intend to prevail, and not in the press.” He added, “My focus has been and will remain on fully funding and supporting a public education system that’s responsive to the needs of our kids and community. I will not let this situation distract me from that.”
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In light of the legal situation, Fairfax County Public Schools has publicly acknowledged the civil lawsuit against McDaniel. A district representative stated, “We understand that this is an ongoing business and legal dispute. We respect the legal process and will refrain from commenting further at this time.”
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