A Round Lake Beach woman, who is the former executive director of the Grayslake Chamber of Commerce, was indicted by the feds for allegedly stealing at least $300,000 in funds belonging to the chamber.
Karen Christian-Smith, 56, of Round Lake Beach, was indicted Wednesday on six counts of wire fraud.
Christian-Smith served as the executive director for the Grayslake Area Chamber of Commerce and Industry, a non-profit organization, from 2006 to October 2019.
The organization was created to advance commercial, industrial, professional and civic interests in the greater Grayslake area.
From 2013 to 2019, Christian-Smith issued checks from the chamber’s bank accounts to herself and deposited them into her personal accounts, the indictment said.
She allegedly spent the money for her own personal use and benefit, instead of spending funds to promote the purposes of the chamber.
Christian-Smith submitted false and misleading financial and payroll reports to the chamber in an attempt to cover up the fraud, the indictment said.
She also allegedly underreported the amount of money she fraudulently paid herself when filing tax returns with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
The indictment alleges Christian-Smith fraudulently misappropriated at least $300,000 in funds belonging to the chamber.
Each count of wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in federal prison.
An arraignment for Christian-Smith at a Chicago federal court has not yet been scheduled.