Former IT manager for Heinz Endowments indicted for embezzling nearly $1 million

The former IT manager for the Heinz Endowments is charged in federal court with embezzling nearly $1 million.

Charles A. Richardson, 45, of Pittsburgh, was indicted on five counts of wire fraud and four counts of money laundering on June 17. The indictment was unsealed on Tuesday.

He is free on bond.

Richardson was sued last year in federal court by the Heinz Endowments for the same conduct, but according to court records, that case was dismissed by the Heinz Endowments in October.

Carmen Lee, a spokeswoman for the organization, said that they referred the matter to law enforcement when they identified the missing assets.

“We have fully cooperated with the authorities in their investigation and will continue to do so throughout their legal process,” she said. “We remain focused on our mission to create an exemplary sustainable Pittsburgh region where everyone can prosper and belong.”

A message left with an attorney listed for Richardson was not immediately returned.

According to the indictment, Richardson worked for the Heinz Endowments from 2014 to 2024 and was responsible for managing technical operations, including maintaining its servers and IT systems.

In addition, the indictment said, Richardson was responsible for hiring third-party vendors and approving their invoices.

Unbeknownst to the Heinz Endowments, Richardson was also the owner and sole operator of Operations Unlimited, known as Ops Unlimited, which he registered as a vendor with the endowments.

From December 2016 to April 2024, the indictment said, Richardson submitted fraudulent invoices to the Heinz Endowments seeking payment for IT services that had been purportedly provided by Ops Unlimited.

“In reality, and as the defendant, Charles A. Richardson, well knew, those services had either been provided by vendors other than Ops Unlimited or had not been provided at all,” the indictment said.

Richardson used the funds he received to pay off several credit cards which, investigators said, he had used to pay for personal expenses, including international travel, home improvement, firearms and top-shelf alcohol.

The indictment goes on to say that Richardson — once he learned about the investigation — used his IT expertise to gain unauthorized access to the endowments’ servers to delete and attempt to delete emails and other documents that showed his alleged fraud.

In total, the indictment alleges a loss by the Heinz Endowments of $960,448.