Ex-University Official Gets Jail Term for Fraud

Humboldt State’s former director of university advancement has been sentenced to a year in jail for a string of charges related to fraudulent expenses and lying to officials.

John Sterns was sentenced by Humboldt County Superior Court Judge John T. Feeney on nine counts of forgery, falsifying government records and theft by false pretenses.

During his three years as director of university advancement, Sterns claimed nearly $50,000 in fraudulent expenses and told the university he raised $15 million more than he had actually raised.