By Sara Jean Green, The Seattle Times –
SEATTLE — Pearl Jam’s former chief financial officer allegedly stole hundreds of thousands of dollars over the course of several years from Seattle’s seminal rock band, spending the money on lavish family vacations, spa treatments, life insurance and pricey California wines, according to the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
Rickey Goodrich was charged with 33 counts of theft on Thursday, which was his 54th birthday, according to charging documents. A summons was sent to Goodrich’s home in Novato, Calif., that day, ordering him to appear for arraignment in King County Superior Court in Seattle on June 28.
Charged with 25 counts of first-degree theft and eight counts of second-degree theft, Goodrich is accused of bilking the band out of at least $380,000 between October 2007 and June 2010, when Goodrich’s alleged embezzlement was discovered by another band accountant, charging papers say.
After he was confronted about financial discrepancies following a May 2010 tour, Goodrich repaid the band $45,000 for so-called loans he allegedly paid to himself by forging another executive’s signature, the papers say.
He was fired in early September 2010.
After the band initiated its own financial audit, Seattle police launched a criminal investigation in January 2011, said Dan Donohoe, a spokesman for Prosecutor Dan Satterberg.
“The alleged thefts date back a number of years, and there were a lot of bank records and financial documents that needed to be reviewed,” he said of the lengthy investigation.
Goodrich, who doesn’t have a criminal history, could face 3 1/2 to nearly 5 years in prison if convicted, Donohoe said.
