SPRINGFIELD, Mo. (ABP) – A Missouri woman pleaded guilty in federal court Oct. 11 to embezzling more than $717,000 from a nursing school operated jointly by a Baptist university and a Catholic hospital.
Amy Phillips, 39, waivcd her right to a grand jury before confessing to charges of theft and tax evasion, Beth Phillips, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced in a press release.
Phillips worked as administrative assistant for the College of Nursing, a division of St. John’s Mercy Health Systems run jointly with Southwest Baptist University in Bolivar, Mo.
Phillips admitted to stealing funds through two separate embezzlement schemes. Between 2004 and 2007 she intercepted checks intended for the hospital and school and deposited them in her personal account. After that she took the bulk of the money from an employee credit union owned and funded by students of the College of Nursing.
Phillips also admitted she did not claim the embezzled funds as taxable income on her federal tax returns, pleading guilty to one count of tax evasion regarding her federal income tax for 2008.
As part of her guilty plea, she agreed to pay $717,999 in restitution to St. John’s and $115,117 plus interest that St. John’s reimbursed Southwest Baptist University for funds that she embezzled from university activities and functions.
Under federal law, she faces sentencing of up to 15 years in prison and a fine of up to $500,000. A sentencing hearing will be scheduled after completion of a pre-sentence investigation.
Phillips was fired in 2009 after the college found more than $500,000 was missing, but her name was not made public until charges were filed. The case was investigated by the IRS, U.S. Secret Service and Springfield, Mo., Police Department.
She also was investigated for theft from a public-school Parent Teacher Organization in the Springfield suburb of Republic, Mo.
The Southwest Baptist University website describes the St John's College of Nursing and Health Sciences as "a unique venture between two faith-based institutions" that "offers programs in nursing that reflect its strong Judeo-Christian heritage."
The college offers both associate and bachelor's degrees in nursing, drawing on the legacy of two historic faith-based institutions.
Southwest Baptist University was founded in 1878 and is affiliated with the Missouri Baptist Convention. St. John's Health System was founded in Springfield, Mo., in 1891 by the Sisters of Mercy as a Catholic institution. The St. John's School of Nursing began in 1905.
Representatives of the university and hospital began working in the mid-1980s to combine their efforts to meet nursing needs in the local and regional communities. The nursing school began partnering with Southwest Baptist University to offer professional nursing degrees in 1996.
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Bob Allen is managing editor of Associated Baptist Press.
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