A Houma man accused of stealing more than $100,000 from a St. Charles Parish-based nonprofit organization was arrested and charged with theft.
Ronald Zeringue, 48, of 200 Glynn Ave. in Houma, was charged with theft of $25,000 or more after an investigation revealed that Zeringue, as treasurer of the Contractor Safety Alliance (CSA), had several unexplained expenditures for the group dating back to 2012, according to the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office.
CSA is a nonprofit organization based at Dow Chemical in Taft and associated with several Dow contractors. The group was formed with the purpose of promoting safety at the Dow Chemical site and members of the organization pay an annual fee. The organization also donates funds to charities.
Newly elected CSA board members obtained banking records showing irregular purchases.
According to the Sheriff’s Office, a CSA representative then reported a theft of funds from a banking account associated with the group to police, leading to Zeringue’s arrest.
As treasurer, Zeringue was responsible for making payments, commonly using bank checks that would require two board members’ signatures. He also obtained a debit card for the bank account during his time as treasurer.
“Records relinquished to the St. Charles Parish Sheriff’s Office showed over $100,000 in expenditures between January of 2012 through September of 2017 that were not authorized by the council governing the organization,” said Sheriff’s Office spokesman Cpl. James Grimaldi. “Zeringue was also unable to show documents or provide explanations for the purchases. Subsequently, an arrest warrant was issued and Zeringue was placed under arrest accordingly.”
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