Second ex-employee of Jewish center in La Jolla sentenced for embezzlement
A second ex-employee of the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center in La Jolla was sentenced Friday to a year in jail for embezzling from the center.
Tamara Azizov, 62, formerly an accounts clerk, embezzled $154,192 by using center credit cards, according to documents in San Diego federal court. She allegedly falsified records to indicate the purchases were legitimate.
Instead she used the money for jewelry and designer clothing, Tom Ford sunglasses, Simone Perele lingerie and sushi meals at Zip Fusion, prosecutors said.
At the same time, the center was forced to reduce programs and lay off employees. Chief Judge Barry Moskowitz ordered Azizov to repay the center.
In August, the center’s former chief financial officer was sentenced to a year in jail for embezzling more than $400,000.
Nancy Johnson, 59, admitted misappropriating $412,289.64, which she used for a stay at a resort in Maui, airfare to the Bahamas, designer Jimmy Choo shoes, tickets to the ESPN X Games and dining at upscale restaurants, among other things, according to court documents.
The schemes of Johnson and Azizov were separate and only discovered after they left the center in 2014, prosecutors said.
Founded in 1945, the center is designed to offer social, cultural and recreational programs, including the Jewish Film Festival and the Jewish Book Fair, and has an annual budget of $13 million.
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