Former Richland Rotary treasurer accused of stealing $40,000
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- Former Richland Rotary treasurer charged with stealing nearly $40,000.
- Alleged thefts occurred June 2024 to February 2025 using an unauthorized debit card.
- State probe found prior transfers; consent order bars registration for 10 years.
The Richland Rotary Club’s former treasurer investigated by the state for financial discrepancies is accused of pocketing nearly $40,000 from the club’s foundation in the span of eight months.
Prosecutors charged Charles Andrew Cook, 51, with first-degree identity theft after he used an unauthorized debit card to siphon the money from the club’s account.
Cook, who is working in Spokane now, is expected to enter a plea to the charge on Nov. 6.
The outgoing Richland Rotary Club president explained to police that they were changing leaders at the club and updating their bookkeeping when Cook admitted to a new board member that he’d been taking money from the foundation.
Cook held position of treasurer between June 2024 and February 2025.
Cook also allegedly provided the club’s outgoing president with a letter admitting to the theft, court documents said. Richland police reviewed the bank records and found they matched the amount Cook allegedly said he took.
The 50-member Richland Rotary Club brings together business owners and others for community service projects, according to the club’s website. It’s unclear the size of the group’s budget.
WA securities division investigation
In 2024, the Washington State Department of Financial Institutions investigated Cook and his former company Columbia Square Wealth Management after some money was missing from a nonprofit foundation.
It’s not clear if there is a connection to the current charges because the consent order does not name the foundation. The order says he joined the nonprofit in 2022 and was elected treasurer.
Cook had been a registered investment adviser under the state’s Securities Division since 2020, said the document.
The state investigation concluded he made false or misleading statements in documents and “engaged in one or more dishonest or unethical practices” in the securities business, including placing an order to buy or sell securities for a client without obtaining the proper written authorization, said the document.
Cook didn’t admit to any wrongdoing, but agreed that his registration with the agency would be revoked and that he could not register again for 10 years.
The order says he allegedly opened an investment account for the foundation through his wealth management company in 2023.
During the course of several months, he allegedly transferred more than $50,000 out of the foundation account and then into his personal account. The department said that Cook didn’t tell the nonprofit about the transfers.
Cook told state investigators that the money was for payments, but the foundation president denied that the organization authorized those payments.
The foundation board later approved a $60,000 loan that retroactively authorized Cook’s withdrawals.
The state also said he did not make full financial disclosures related to his company’s financial status.
In his federal reports, the company claimed to have $3 million in assets. He later said that was based on a potential client that didn’t happen.
His April 2023 filing with the state said the firm had a net worth of $3,300 at the end of 2022. But bank records show he had two bank accounts that both had a negative balance at the time.