MADISON, Wis. (WMTV) – The former Goodman Community Center vice president of business and finance is accused of spending more than $600,000 in the organization’s funds for personal use.Dewayne Powell faces two charges of uttering a forgery, five charges of theft of movable property charge > $10,000-$100,000, and two charges of theft of movable property > $100,000.A 62-page criminal complaint outlines the charges against Powell, 42, and Madison Police Department’s investigation.A detective determined the fraud by use of Goodman Center credit cards totaled over $602,000 since 2021. The complaint states the purchases were made around four main categories: Venmo payments, Ho-Chunk Gaming cash advances, foreign currency purchases and rent money.The complaint includes a data compilation of different charges Powell allegedly made using four separate Goodman Center credit cards and checks. According to the complaint, Powell went to Ho Chunk Casino at least 200 times during the four-year period. He also purchased dozens of fast-food meals, many of them from pizza places. It also shows he allegedly used company credit cards to buy tickets to Disney on Ice and a Milwaukee Bucks game along with airline tickets to Los Angeles and Miami.He also allegedly purchased flower deliveries at least a dozen times, once on Valentine’s Day, and used the cards for monthly rent and cable bill payments. The data suggests Powell was a frequent visitor to the Wisconsin Dells, using the cards for purchases at The Kalahari and other places.The alleged criminal charges stem back to June 12, 2024, when a Goodman Center employee reported that a bank flagged a $400 check that was made out to Powell. The signature on the check was also not one of the two people authorized to sign checks for the agency, according to the complaint.The employee looked up the vendor page and discovered a second check, which was not flagged, was cleared the same day for $500 and payable to Powell.Powell was fired on June 24, 2024, after it was discovered the checks he had approved. According to the criminal complaint, he said he approved the checks because one of the authorized people was not around to do so. When they told him about the discrepancies, he said he thought the card was compromised by someone else.Police reported interviewing Powell about the discrepancy. The complaint states he told officers one of his job duties was to fill the ATM up at the Goodman Center. Two employees later verified that it was one of his job responsibilities, but he would have to email them with a request to do this and usually requested over $3,000. An audit of the ATM later showed a discrepancy of $5,740.The criminal complaint states an employee at GCC determined it was “blatantly obvious” that recent transactions on two credit cards used by Powell were not used for GCC. This included rent payments, hotel rooms in Illinois and Venmo payments to his loved ones. He also regularly used the card at Ho-Ch
Ven. Gen 31st, 2025
