News : VGH CEO Pleads Guilty to Embezzling $3.2 Million from former employer

Euan David MacGregor, formerly known as David Joseph Bean, 54, of Iowa City, Iowa, pleaded guilty Tuesday to one count of wire fraud for defrauding his former employer out of more than $3.2 million, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, between November 2014 and January 2020, Euan MacGregor, then known as David Bean, used his position as a Chief Administrative Officer to embezzle money from his employer.

MacGregor defrauded his former employer in two ways. First, he diverted at least 122 checks made payable to his employer to bank accounts that he controlled. MacGregor did this by creating a shell corporation that had a business name similar to the name of his employer and depositing the checks into bank accounts that he opened in the name of the shell corporation. MacGregor then presented false financial information to the company's president and shareholders causing them to believe they had received the monies he diverted. In addition, MacGregor falsely represented to his employer that he was outsourcing his employer's bookkeeping work to a third party, a company named Essential Business Services, another company that MacGregor created and controlled. MacGregor's false representations caused his employer to pay Essential Business Services thousands of dollars each month for bookkeeping services that it did not perform. MacGregor used the money he fraudulently obtained to pay for personal expenses for him and his family, including mortgage payments, the payment of credit cards, educational expenses, travel, and the purchase of vehicles.

An investigation by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorney Shelley D. Weger prosecuted the case.

MacGregor is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge John A. Mendez on Jan. 28, 2025. MacGregor faces a maximum statutory penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The sentence, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables.

Virginia Gay Hospital released the following statement:

"Euan MacGregor is no longer employed by Virginia Gay Hospital. The Board of Directors have appointed Barry Dietsch, CFO and Tina Eden, CNO as Interim Executive Leaders until a new CEO is hired. Virginia Gay Hospital cannot comment further on this confidential personnel matter. We remain committed to providing quality health care services to the patients and communities that we serve."