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A former Wyandotte elementary school principal pleaded guilty Friday to embezzling more than $89,000 in school funds she used for vacations, meals, gift cards, clothing and rent, the U.S. Attorney's Office said.
Krizia Allen, 38, of West Bloomfield, who was principal of Garfield Elementary School, pleaded guilty to theft from a federally funded program.
Authorities allege that between June 2018 and February 2023, Allen stole approximately $89,312 of public-school funds. To conceal some of the theft she used a corporation that provided no goods and services to funnel more than $24,000 into her bank account.
Additionally, she used a school credit card entrusted to her for official purposes to make thousands of dollars worth of personal purchases on Amazon, including digital gift cards for Nordstrom, Foot Locker and Old Navy.
In February 2023, after discovering the theft, the school fired her. That same day, she did Internet searches for "embezzlement" and "minimum fraud."
"Every dollar Ms. Allen misappropriated for her own personal gain deprived the students and teachers of Garfield Elementary of the financial resources needed to ensure that each child at Garfield received a proper education," said Detroit U.S. Attorney Dawn Ison in a statement.
