Prosecutors will seek more charges against an Atlanta charter school founder who already faces 48 counts of theft and forgery linked to an alleged theft of roughly $800,000.
Christopher Clemons, the 38-year-old founder of Latin Academy Charter School, has been jailed for more than a year as he awaits resolution of a Fulton County Superior Court case stemming from an investigation into the school's finances.
A deputy district attorney told a judge Wednesday there's more to come.
The state plans to present additional charges to a grand jury in the next week or so, said Fulton County deputy district attorney Brad Malkin, of the white collar crime unit.
Those potential new charges are linked to $350,000 that they allege Clemons embezzled from Latin Grammar School and Latin College Preparatory School, two other schools he founded.
"Once things became known, investigations blossomed," Malkin said.
The Atlanta Journal Constitution reported in 2015 that money was transferred from the schools to a nonprofit foundation Clemons created.
Latin Grammar and the middle school Latin College Preparatory continue to work with authorities on the investigation, said attorney Christopher Adams, who represents both schools, in a written statement.
Latin Academy closed in 2016 amid financial troubles.
An AJC investigation uncovered unusual charges in that school's financial documents. Those included a $12,000 charge at a strip club and thousands of dollars spent at Mercedes-Benz of Buckhead.
A final plea in the case had been scheduled for Wednesday, but the court date has been moved to Sept. 6.
Clemons' attorney, Meghan Callier, had previously said she planned to ask for a delay because she could not be in court Wednesday.
Clemons faces a total maximum sentence of 735 years in prison if convicted on all counts in that case.
About the Author
