A former Yute Commuter Service business manager is facing criminal charges for allegedly embezzling more than $200,000 in company funds, nearly four years after he was named in a civil suit seeking damages for the same alleged theft.
Forty-year-old Nathan McCabe faces four counts of scheme to defraud and one count of first-degree theft, all class B felonies carrying a maximum sentence of 10 years.
A press release from the Alaska Department of Law alleges McCabe defrauded Bethel businesses Yute Commuter Service and Riverside Apartments out of more than $200,000 over a period of several months.
According to a May 14 indictment, the alleged crimes occurred at some point between early 2019 and summer 2020, when McCabe was directly involved in the operations of both the Bethel-based commuter air service and the apartment building.
The charges cover a wide range of unauthorized payments using company accounts, including personal expenses, wire payments for two motorbikes, and pay raises and bonuses McCabe allegedly gave to himself.
According to the overlapping civil complaint brought against McCabe in 2020, McCabe was hired as assistant business manager at Yute Commuter Service in February 2019 and became business manager later that year.
Two other defendants, McCabe’s wife and maternal cousin, are named in the civil suit, though neither appear to be facing criminal charges at this point.
McCabe is scheduled to be arraigned in Bethel Superior Court on May 21, and a trial could start as soon as July 9.
