Former Butler Health System COO, husband sentenced for embezzling $1.3 million

The former chief operating officer for Butler Health System, and her husband, a former detective, are going to federal prison on charges that they embezzled more than $1.3 million from her employer over a period of six years.

The money taken by Stephanie J. Roskovski, 51, and her husband, Scott A. Roskovski, 52, was used to fund a lavish lifestyle for their family, as well as for a motocross business they own in Butler, Switchback MX LLC, prosecutors said.

“As the second in command of the hospital system, she was entrusted to maintain its financial wellbeing and to act in its best interest,” the U.S. attorney’s office wrote in a sentencing memorandum. “There are no mitigating circumstances here, no financial hardship and no personal tragedies — just greed.”

The couple was sentenced on Thursday by U.S. District Judge William S. Stickman IV.

Stephanie Roskovski will serve 51 months in prison — at the top of the advisory guideline range — to be followed by three years of supervised release. Although she admitted to her conduct related to all 42 counts returned against her in a federal indictment, Stephanie Roskovski pleaded guilty only to two counts — mail fraud and filing a false income tax return.

Scott Roskovski, 52, will serve 30 months in prison — also at the top of his recommended guidelines — followed by one year of supervised release. He pleaded guilty to making false statements in a loan application and filing a false tax return.

According to court filings, he worked in law enforcement for most of his life, including from 1998 to 2018 as a detective with the Butler County District Attorney’s office, focused on white collar crime. The government said that Scott Roskovski falsified loan papers with S&T Bank to obtain more than $1 million in loan funds to operate the motocross business, which the couple bought in 2015.

In embezzling the money, prosecutors said that Stephanie Roskovski used her corporate credit card to make personal purchases and then provided the health system with falsified receipts to make it appear the expenditures were legitimate. She submitted disbursement requests that alleged that she had used personal funds to pay for business expenses, the government said.

Prosecutors called her fraud “extensive and egregious.”

”The fraudulently obtained monies were used, in significant part, to fund personal luxuries, such as extravagant family vacations, tickets for expensive sporting and music events, costly home renovations, and extensive expenditures on Switchback MX LLC, Scott Roskovski’s motocross business,” the U.S. Attorney’s office wrote in its sentencing memorandum.

According to the prosecution, the couple used more than $68,000 to pay for a family vacation to Hawaii over the Christmas holiday in 2016.

In her role as chief operating officer, Stephanie Roskovski earned $300,000 annually plus bonuses, and was the second in command of the health system. In her sentencing memorandum, her attorney praised the work that Stephanie Roskovski did for the health system, in increasing the number of physicians who work there, the number of patient beds and the areas served by it.

“The Roskovskis knew what they were doing was wrong,” said FBI Pittsburgh Special Agent in Charge Mike Nordwall in a news release. “They embezzled money to line their own pockets and live a lavish lifestyle. They are now convicted felons and will serve time for their crimes. Hopefully today’s sentencing will bring some closure to the community and send the message that the FBI takes our responsibility to stop those who set out to commit fraud and use it for their own personal gain very seriously. It simply won’t be tolerated.”

According to the government, the couple has, thus far, paid back $576,752 to the health system. In addition, Stephanie Roskovski’s attorney said that she has also assigned over money contained in her retirement fund.

In his case, Scott Roskovski’s attorney called his role in the crimes “a minor one,” which “supports the imposition of the lowest legally permissible sentence.”

He also wrote that nothing in the internal audit done by Butler Health System “concluded that Scott was aware of or directly involved in the alleged fraudulent activity.”

Scott Roskovski attempted to withdraw his guilty plea twice, arguing that he lacked the necessary intent to commit the crimes. However, Judge Stickman denied his motions.