CARROLLTON, Ohio (WJW) – Indictments filed with the Carroll County Clerk of Courts name Carrollton Exempted Village Schools Superintendent Dr. David Quattrochi, the school board president, his wife and one other man accusing them in a scheme that cost the district thousands.
“The four of them are charged with felony counts of engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, money laundering, theft in office, grand theft having an unlawful interest in a public contract and telecommunications fraud those are the felony counts against all four of them,” said Mark Kovac of the State Auditor’s office, which has taken the lead in the investigation.
Kovac said the concerns first came to the auditor’s office when a company from whom the district had been buying air purifiers was listed under the name of their school board President Michael Pozderac.
Fox 8 news found documents for a company called Pozitively Quality air registered with the Ohio Secretary of State’s office.
The agent for the company is listed as Michael Pozderac, with its address the same as his Carrollton home.
The state auditor’s office says he was doing business with the district through that, and another company called ‘The Phoenix Rising.’
“Through these two shell companies they sold air purifiers worth 71 thousand dollars to the district and then the resulting profit from that about 47-thousand dollars they split among themselves, so they used these shell companies to hide their connection with the school district in doing business with the school district,” said Kovac.
The indictments also name Pozderac’s wife, Mary “Jackie” Pozderac, whose LinkedIn page describes her as an art teacher with the district, and another man Gus Nickolas.
The Carroll County Prosecutor’s office says it is not involved in the case.
Prosecutors with the Ohio Auditor’s office are taking the lead.
Quattrochi has been suspended with pay since October.
The Carrollton Exempted Village School Board was meeting on Friday afternoon to accept his resignation and has asked for the resignation of Pozderac and his wife.
In an online statement to parents the current School Board President, Dan Riles said:
“The vision of the Carrollton Exempted Village School District is to inspire every student with a passion for learning, personal integrity, civic responsibility and a commitment to excellence, and that is expected of our staff members as well. On Thursday, December 8, we were notified of criminal felony indictments against Superintendent Dr. David Quattrochi, Board Member Michael Pozderac and teacher Jackie Pozderac and are deeply concerned about the serious nature of the allegations.
It is disappointing to learn that three recognized leaders in our district may have used their positions for personal gain. Their alleged behavior is inconsistent with the strong values we have within our district. When we were notified of the indictments, we suspended Dr. Quattrochi and Ms. Pozderac from their duties and filed misconduct reports with the Ohio Department of Education. Since then, Dr. Quattrochi has submitted his resignation for approval from the Board. The Board will meet on Friday, December 9 at 3 p.m. to vote to accept his resignation. Our Board also has asked for the resignations of Board Member Pozderac and Ms. Pozderac.
As the legal process in this matter proceeds, we will be as transparent as legally possible when
communicating with our school community. Our highest priority right now is the financial integrity of the district and a focus on the successful continuation of this school year. We are working with our current treasurer, Amy Spears, to ensure that all the district finances are in order. In addition, Dave Davis was recently appointed as the Interim Superintendent and will continue in this role, and we are identifying arrangements for substitutes for Ms. Pozderac’s classes.
The Board of Education would like to thank the community for its support during this time. We are cooperating fully with the prosecutor’s office and local law enforcement. We take seriously our roles as leaders of this school district and will provide further details as appropriate.”
FOX 8 News went to the Pozderac’s Carrollton home on Friday where Mrs. Pozderac said only “It is very unfair” but made no other statements.
“Generally speaking, if you are a person working for a public office, especially somebody in charge of a public office you can’t do business to benefit yourself through contracting and providing services and products to the district,” said Kovac.
