COLUMBIA, S.C. — A state grand jury has indicted a former Richland One official on charges that he embezzled school funds for his own personal use.
The South Carolina Attorney General's Office said Travis Antonio Braddy, 43, is facing a 12 count indictment that accuses him of misconduct while he worked as the Richland One procurement officer. Prosecutors said he resigned from the district in May of 2021 on grounds of insubordination.
According to the indictment, the case involves the use of what's known as purchasing cards, or P-cards, issued by the district. Those credit cards are used by organizations to make purchases for official business expenses.
Among the claims are that Braddy used his card to book rooms at a Hilton Garden hotel in Columbia. Prosecutors said he then claimed in falsified invoices that he was using the money to buy excess protective equipment from the hotel for COVID protection equipment for the district's use. Instead, prosecutors say he used the $3,358.16 for personal use.
As part of the same effort, the indictment said Braddy rented a GMC Yukon with money that had been approved to rent a box truck to deliver COVID protective equipment to schools. Prosecutors said he used the SUV for his personal use and continued to use it even after he left the district. In all ,the indictment said that cost $10,424.25.
And finally, the attorney general's office said that he created a fake purchase order to sent school district money to a "sham" company and account which prosecutor said was under the control of a person closed to him. The indictment alleges this used $9,388 for district money.
In total, the attorney general's office said Braddy defrauded the district of $23,170.41 They said if convicted, he will face a maximum of 54 years in prison.
A spokesperson for Richland School District One released the following statement when asked about the indictment by News19:
“The discrepancies were discovered through our system of internal controls and checks and balances. We turned over what we found through our investigation to law enforcement. As an added measure, there are different levels of authorization for P-Card holders depending on the positions they hold in the district and their purchasing needs.”