St. John Is Suspected of Embezzling

Juanita St. John--who allegedly owes the city more than $260,000 in connection with the Africa trade task force she headed--also is suspected of embezzling funds from an anti-genocide organization called International Alert, according to a search warrant made public Thursday.

Los Angeles police seized bank and credit card records from seven locations after Sgt. James R. Heisdorf said in an affidavit that an investigation indicates St. John “committed theft by false pretenses” of an undetermined amount of money from the city-financed task force and allegedly “embezzled $5,000” from International Alert.

St. John’s connection with International Alert had not been disclosed previously. While serving as treasurer of the group, St. John allegedly received a $5,000 contribution from businessman Nathan Shapell, which police say she deposited and then removed in three increments.

Shapell was traveling in Mexico and could not be reached for comment.

St. John said Thursday that she accounted properly for all the funds she handled as treasurer of International Alert. And she reiterated that she was entitled to all the task force funds she spent. She said she will be able to account for all of the nearly $400,000 in city funds the group received since 1985 but has not done so on the advice of her attorneys.

“I will agree I’m a lousy accountant,” she said. “That doesn’t make me a criminal. I didn’t take any of the city money.”

She acknowledged that she has had personal financial problems but said “not a penny” of the public funds was used to bail her out.

Thousands of bank statements, checks, deposit slips, credit card invoices and other financial documents in the name of St. John, her husband and daughter, and the Africa task force for the past five years were seized at three Bank of America branches, two First Interstate Bank branches, a Wells Fargo Bank office and an American Express office.

Heisdorf and other members of the Police Department’s investigation could not be reached late Thursday for information about what the newly obtained records show.

St. John’s attorney, Vicki Podberesky, said she had no comment, adding that explanations will be given “at the appropriate time.” She said she had never heard of International Alert.

Earlier this month, the state attorney general’s office sued St. John for refusing to publicly disclose how the nonprofit Africa trade task force spent hundreds of thousands of dollars.

City auditors have been unable to determine even her salary, specifically whether she was entitled to the more than $40,000 she was receiving annually from a city-funded pass-through account at UCLA.

But St. John told The Times Thursday that she was supposed to receive $75,000 per year. She said this was agreed to by task force officials before she became executive director. However, several of those officials have told investigators they did not know the amount of her salary.

City auditors also have said that St. John owes the city $180,000 in unaccounted for withdrawals from task force accounts, and all told she and the group owe the city more than $260,000.

St. John, in the most detailed explanation she has offered yet, said $110,000 of that was compensation and much of the rest was repayment of the outstanding balance on a $150,000 loan she made to the task force in 1981.

A business associate of Mayor Tom Bradley, St. John has been under investigation by both the Los Angeles County district attorney and the Los Angeles Police Department. The city attorney is also considering suing St. John to recover the allegedly misspent funds.

In addition, the 59-year-old San Marino resident faces a criminal trial Dec. 21 on a misdemeanor charge of violating a city controller’s subpoena for the records. Last month, St. John invoked the 5th Amendment more than 60 times when she was subpoenaed before a City Council committee that wanted an explanation of where the tax money went.

St. John’s task force figured prominently in controversy surrounding Bradley’s finances.