#KahliBuds #MMJ #CBD #THC

Florida-based cannabis giant Trulieve (OTCQX: TCNNF) finally filed a lawsuit against its former financial chief for misusing company funds for personal expenses.

Filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Florida, the suit accuses Alex D’Amico of leveraging his position to finance personal luxuries, including vacations, expensive clothes, and legal fees; all under the guise of business-related expenditures.

“Throughout his tenure as CFO, D’Amico surreptitiously acted as though his position entitled him to raid the corporate coffers to finance his personal largesse as if it were his own personal slush fund,” the suit said.

The total disputed amount is estimated to be between $350,000 and $400,000 over approximately four years.

Additionally, he is accused of seeking reimbursements through the company’s expense management system, CONCUR, for the same expenses already charged to the corporate card, as well as some completely made up.

“Not only did D’Amico double dip by submitting personal reimbursements for the very same “corporate expenses” he had already inappropriately charged to Trulieve on his company credit card, but also for purely fabricated expenses never incurred by him,” the company wrote.

The discrepancies were identified through a company-led investigation last year, following irregularities in expense reports. The probe triggered D’Amico’s resignation in June, amid ongoing scrutiny by the company’s board and audit committee.

According to the suit, D’Amico purchased thousands of dollars’ worth of clothing from high-end retailers such as Nordstrom, Lululemon, Vuori, and BYLT Premium Basics. For instance, on April 12, 2023, he allegedly charged $236.00 at Lululemon, and on May 12, 2023, he charged $819.00 at BYLT Premium Basics.

D’Amico is also accused of using company funds to pay for his personal attorney’s retainer, amounting to thousands of dollars, a cost which the lawsuit asserts was not a legitimate business expense.

On April 15, 2023, he is said to have charged $1,318.88 to his corporate card for a purchase from eye care chain, Pearle Vision.

On May 6, 2023, he allegedly made three separate unauthorized charges totaling approximately $130 at the Legoland Discovery Center in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

He also used the card to pay for a $24,000 “executive training” program that the company claims was neither authorized nor beneficial.

Despite the company presenting evidence of misconduct, D’Amico resigned last year without acknowledging any wrongdoing. His compensation at the time of resignation included a base salary of $400,000, along with $207,000 in stock awards and options for 197,000 company shares.

Following his resignation from Trulieve, D’Amico briefly joined CytoSorbents Corp as CFO, a position he left shortly after Trulieve made its internal audit and his departure public, according to Law360.

The lawsuit demands restitution and damages on grounds including breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, civil fraud, and conversion.

D’Amico had been with Trulieve as the CFO since 2020. After D’Amico left, Ryan Blust temporarily took over. Then, Tim Mullany was chosen as the new CFO in July but left just 10 days later for personal reasons. Blust then was asked to step in again while the company launched another search for a permanent CFO.

The company tapped Wes Getman in December 2023 to take over the role.

TrulieveCFOsuit

The post Trulieve sues ex-CFO for splurging corporate cash appeared first on Green Market Report.

420GrowLife

via www.KahliBuds.com

Adam Jackson, KahliBuds, 420GrowLife