BOSTON — A Superior Court judge has ruled that the former president of Lynn Community Access and Media (LynnCAM) can no longer work for nonprofits.
The ruling, agreed upon by all parties, settles a 2015 lawsuit brought by Attorney General Maura Healey against Robert Sewell, then LynnCAM’s president, and Almanzo Rodriguez, Sewell’s brother-in-law, for allegedly stealing tens of thousands of dollars from the local cable channel.
Healey alleged Sewell treated LynnCAM’s funds as his own, used several thousand dollars to make purchases at retail and home improvement stores, restaurants and gas stations.
The AG also alleged Sewell issued checks as payment for services that were never rendered and to payees that did not exist, and then cashed them and retained the proceeds for personal use. The complaint also alleged Rodriguez benefited from those checks.
Under the terms of the deal, Sewell and Rodriguez did not admit wrongdoing. The agreement does not require any repayment of the stolen cash to the cable station.
Founded in 2005, LynnCAM is a nonprofit organized in 2005 that operates a community television studio for providing public, educational and municipal access.
Through a spokeswoman, Healey declined comment because cases against other former LynnCAM officials are still pending. The cases include a complaint against Karen Chapman, LynnCAM’s former president; her husband, John Chapman; and Cynthia Demakes, LynnCAM’s treasurer.
The complaint also alleges that John Chapman, a plumber, used LynnCAM funds to purchase items used in connection with his business and never repaid the organization.
Chapman was also allegedly paid more than $30,000 by LynnCAM in after-tax salary between 2012 and 2014, despite the fact that he was not an employee and a provision in the by-laws prohibits the organization from hiring relatives of its officers and directors. Likewise, Karen Chapman received more than $14,800 in payroll checks during that time despite the fact that the by-laws prohibited her from receiving compensation for her work there.
The complaint further alleges that Demakes, the treasurer, did not exercise proper oversight over LynnCAM’s affairs and failed to prevent the misappropriation and misuse of its charitable funds.
In a separate case last year, Chapman of Lynn pleaded guilty to one count of passing a false check and was sentenced to two years probation. The indictments charged Chapman with soliciting bribes in exchange for electrical work for LynnCAM and stealing $20,970 worth of property from the studio, and making fraudulent entries in the corporate books and on corporate financial statements, vendor invoices and tax returns.
LynnCAM is no longer broadcasting. Last year, Lynn Community Television (LCTV) was launched by Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy and cable access money paid to the city by Verizon and Comcast is going to LCTV.
