p2p news / p2pnet:- One and a quarter million dollars in songwriter royalties have been allegedly embezzled from the Songwriters Guild of America by its royalty manager, Marsha Aiken, and family members.

“The SGA’s special counsel, Charles Sanders, tells Billboard.biz that the FBI, the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. Postal Service are working with the guild to determine the full extent of any criminal activities,” says Billboard.

Aiken became royalty manager in 2002 and, “created a fraudulent membership account under the name Anthony Ray, who the IRS later identified as her cousin,” says the story. “She began writing unauthorized royalty checks to Ray from the SGA’s general account – where the unknown writers’ funds are held – and mailing them to him in Rhode Island.

“A Rhode Island bank complied with federal banking regulations by notifying the IRS when someone attempted to cash an SGA check for more than $10,000, Sanders says.”

The IRS contacted the SGA, Billboard goes on, but Aiken took charge of the inquiry and “stalled the IRS with various excuses,” Sanders says.

“In June the IRS contacted an SGA executive and pointed out that Aiken and the recipient of the check were cousins,” the story states, going on that Aikens was immediately fired and an investigation launched.

The SGA has “acted expeditiously to strengthen its systems and infrastructure, and as a result will move forward from this unfortunate incident as a stronger and even more vital organization in the America music community,” SGA president Rick Carnes is quoted as saying.

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See:-
Billboard – Embezzlement Scandal Hits SGA , September 2, 2005

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