Marc Haynes Used Stolen Funds Meant for School to Pay for Luxury Travel, Shopping, and Court-Ordered Restitution
Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg, Jr., today announced the sentencing of MARC HAYNES, 37, the former co-treasurer of the Parent Teacher Association (“PTA”) for East Side Elementary School, PS 267, to 2 1/2-5 years in state prison for stealing approximately $185,000 from the PTA through unauthorized credit card payments. HAYNES pleaded guilty in New York State Supreme Court to Grand Larceny in the Second Degree on January 17, 2023. Pursuant to his plea agreement, HAYNES was permitted to re-plead to the offense of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree after paying about $83,000 in partial restitution. HAYNES will also be required to pay the remaining balance of more than $102,000 in restitution upon his release from prison.
“Marc Haynes used money stolen from his own child’s elementary school PTA to bankroll luxury vacations, shopping sprees and even to pay court-ordered restitution from a prior conviction,” said District Attorney Bragg. “I’m thankful to the unflagging efforts of the parents of the PS 267 PTA, the Special Commissioner of Investigation for the New York City School District and this Office’s Financial Frauds Bureau for thoroughly investigating this theft and holding him to account. If you believe your organization or company has been a victim of this type of scheme, call us at 212-335-8900 to report financial frauds.”
Special Commissioner for the New York City School District Anastasia Coleman said, “Marc Haynes stole thousands of dollars from the PTA account of a local public school, money that should have been used to expand educational opportunities for the children of P.S. 267, and used it instead for personal enrichment. Such theft from our City’s school children should never go unanswered, and we thank D.A. Bragg and his team for vigorously pursuing prosecution and restitution in this matter.”
As admitted in his guilty plea and according to court documents and statements made on the record in court, HAYNES served as the co-treasurer for East Side Elementary School’s PTA, located at East 63rd Street on the Upper East Side, for the 2020-2021 school year. From October 26, 2020, to July 6, 2021, he made 17 unauthorized payments to his personal J.P. Morgan Chase credit card using one of the PTA’s accounts, which he could access in his position as treasurer. The payments ranged in amounts from $2,389 to $32,000 and totaled $185,717. HAYNES used the stolen funds to pay credit card bills for charges at luxury hotels in St. Lucia and Bermuda and purchases at Fendi, Restoration Hardware, and Pottery Barn.
In October 2021, one of the PTA’s new co-treasurers noticed a suspicious $9,081 transaction in one of the accounts for which there was no supporting documentation. When initially confronted about the payment, HAYNES, who was currently serving as co-president of the PTA, claimed the transaction was to reimburse another PTA member’s credit card for an urgent furniture purchase. After being unable to verify that, the co-treasurers emailed HAYNES and several PTA members requesting supporting documentation. Instead of providing documentation, Haynes replied to the email resigning from his position as co-president of the PTA. One of the co-treasurers discovered additional unexplained credit card payments and the PTA subsequently reported the thefts to several law enforcement agencies, including the Manhattan D.A.’s Office.
In July 2016, HAYNES was convicted of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree in a separate case prosecuted by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office for stealing from his former employer, a publishing company, and sentenced to five years of probation and $51,247 in restitution. He used stolen PTA funds to pay two court-ordered restitution payments for that case, which he charged to his credit card, totaling $23,838.
Former Assistant D.A. Jessica Olive handled the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Ryan Gee (Deputy Chief of the Financial Frauds Bureau), Hope Korenstein (Deputy Chief of the Financial Frauds Bureau), and Kofi Sansculotte (Chief of the Financial Frauds Bureau) and Executive Assistant D.A. Susan Hoffinger (Chief of the Investigation Division). Financial Frauds paralegal Kristen Grimes, Senior Rackets Investigator Anthony Santoro and Rackets Investigator Genesis De Luna assisted with the investigation.
District Attorney Bragg thanked the Special Commissioner of Investigation for the New York City School District.
Defendant Information:
MARC HAYNES
New York, NY
Convicted:
- Grand Larceny in the Third Degree, a class D felony, one count
Sentenced:
- 2 1/2-5 years in state prison