Ex-Charity Leader Sean Patrick Taylor Indicted In Theft Case

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The former director of two nonprofit organizations in Kansas City has been indicted by a federal grand jury on charges that he stole more than $133,000 from the charities and his landlord.

Sean Patrick Taylor, also known as J.R. Wayne Gourley, faces 82 counts of fraud and theft.

Taylor was hired to run the Epilepsy Foundation of Kansas and Weste Missouri in early 2007 and stayed until he resigned under pressure two years later after being confronted with embezzlement allegations. A month later, he was hired by Westport Cooperative Services and stayed there until he was fired about a year later.

In the indictment, prosecutors said Taylor opened an unauthorized bank account using the Epilepsy Foundation’s name and diverted nearly $43,000 in donated cash and checks into that account. The indictment claims Taylor used the money at area restaurants and casinos, and lost more than $72,000 playing the slot machines at the Prairie Band Casino in Mayetta, Kan.

Prosecutors said he engaged in similar practices at Westport Cooperative Services, diverting $46,638 into an unauthorized account between Aug. 24, 2009 and May 7, 2010. Withdrawals from those accounts were made at ATMs at several casinos in the region.

According to the indictment, Westport Cooperatives Services, had to end its Meals on Wheels program because of the thefts. It also lost a bid to become a permanent sponsor of a foster grandparents program.

Prosecutors said Taylor also opened unauthorized lines of credit in his landlord's name and stole about $5,000.