Ex-Charity Head Indicted for Theft

A former president of Goodwill Industries of Santa Clara County, in California, has been indicted on federal charges that he stole $804,602 from the charity from 1979 to 1997 by wiring money intended for job training for disabled people into personal accounts in Switzerland and Austria.

Andrew Liersch, 67, was arrested at Los Angeles International Airport after being extradited from Guatemala, where he had fled during an investigation of the Goodwill chapter that began six years ago.

During a hearing in Oakland, Mr. Liersch pleaded not guilty to five charges of money laundering and wire fraud. He is being held without bail and could face up to 20 years in prison on each charge.

The U.S. attorney in the Northern District of California accused Mr. Liersch of conspiring with two Goodwill store managers.

Seven people have been convicted and imprisoned for stealing money from 13 Goodwill stores in the Silicon Valley area. Goodwill officials say the Santa Clara chapter has lost between $16-million and $20-million in embezzled funds.