Compton : YMCA Director Arraigned on Forgery, Fraud Charges

Jamesette (James) Hays Jr., director of the Compton YMCA, was arraigned on forgery charges Tuesday in Compton Municipal Court. A hearing was set for Nov. 5 to determine if he will be bound over to Superior Court for trial. Hays entered a plea of not guilty.

According to Deputy Dist. Atty. Pamela Frohreich, Hays is charged with forging the name of a contractor on a $7,164 city check that was to help pay for renovations at the Y’s new facility on Long Beach Boulevard. Hays allegedly deposited the money in a YMCA account and wrote 56 checks with it.

Hays was also arraigned Tuesday on charges of writing a check without sufficient funds and of violating probation. He is accused of writing an $8,000 check to the contractor, Roland Dix of R. D. Construction in Los Angeles, on a second YMCA account that did not have enough money in it.

Hays is also accused of violating a three-year probation that stems from a 1987 case in which he pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit grand theft. That case involved checks stolen from the Los Angeles-based Motown Record Corp.

The city of Compton, meanwhile, has ordered its auditors to look at the Y’s financial records to determine how the group spent its money. During the past two years, the YMCA received $180,000 from the city to buy and remodel its new headquarters. Its old facility on Alameda Street was demolished by the city to make way for redevelopment.

Hays, who was arrested by Compton Police on Aug. 27, is free on $20,000 bail.