A former New York Upstate Medical University president has pleaded guilty to increasing his pay by misusing his position.
On Monday, David Smith, who appeared before the Syracuse City Court, accepted that he illegally increased his pay by $190,000 and pleaded guilty to three other counts of misconduct.
Attorney General Barbara Underwood alleged Smith of approving an unauthorized raise of $28,450 from the university research foundation, whose proceeds he continued to receive till his resignation in November 2013.
“David Smith brazenly abused his position and exploited those he served in order to line his own pockets – and now he’s facing the consequences,” Underwood told WSYR TV. “We have zero tolerance for those who try to game the system and violate the public trust, and my office will continue to hold public officials to account.”
The plea comes after the Attorney’s office and Inspector General’s office jointly investigated the case.
“Dr. Smith improperly manipulated and siphoned from numerous funding streams under his control, and my investigation is continuing to help ensure such foul play can never happen again,” Inspector Catherine Leahy Scott said in a statement.
“It is now clear that his primary role of ensuring the highest quality education for students and care for patients was at best secondary to his cynical schemes to illicitly pad his income.”
The court has asked Smith to pay $250,000 in restitution and fines and could land himself in jail if he fails to comply with the directions.