Powell man pleads guilty to embezzling over $26 million from Columbus furniture company

A Powell man pleaded guilty on Tuesday to embezzling more than $26 million over four years from a Columbus furniture company where he was employed.

Yi He, 35, entered his plea in U.S. District Court in Columbus to committing wire fraud and filing a false tax return, according to the office of Kenneth L. Parker, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio.

How did he embezzle so much money?

The company where He worked, Roundhill Furniture on Columbus' West Side, supplies furniture to retailers like Wayfair, Overstock, Kohls, Walmart and Ashley, according to federal court records. He had been employed at the company for a long time and was responsible for payroll and related tax duties for it.

Between 2018 and 2022, He put money from the company's bank account into his personal and investment accounts by submitting false and fraudulent bank and financial statements to the company's leadership, court records indicate.

In February 2022, for example, he wired himself $100,000 and then removed the transaction from the company's bank statement for that month. In total, prosecutors said in a release, He stole $26.5 million from the company.

In addition, He embezzled a total $635,000 from a limited liability corporation (LLC) he helped oversee that was created to reward longtime company employees by helping them earn more and contribute to their retirement. In April 2022, he took $200,000 of that amount from the LLC and categorized the transfer to himself as rent., Parker's office said in a release.

He submitted false income tax reports to the IRS from 2018 to 2021, accounting for a tax loss of about $6.8 million, the release said.

A message was left with Roundhill Furniture on Wednesday evening by The Dispatch seeking comment.

How will he be punished?

He will be sentenced based on federal maximum sentences and other factors. The sentence for wire fraud is up to 20 years in prison and filing a false tax return is up to three years in prison.

He will have to repay more than $27 million in restitution to the furniture company and the LLC. He also had to forfeit two homes in Reynoldsburg and one in Columbus to recoup some of the money.

dking@dispatch.com

@DanaeKing