Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascón announced Thursday that a former Saugus School District Board member and dean of East Los Angeles College has been charged with overbilling his employer for trips he took.

Paul De La Cerda served as East Los Angeles College (ELAC) Dean until March 2021, at which time he was dismissed by the Los Angeles Community College District (LACCD) due to being under criminal investigation.

“My office will continue to strive to root out public corruption in order to make government clean,” District Attorney Gascón said.

47-year-old De La Cerda was charged with one felony count each of misappropriation of government funds and embezzlement of government funds.

See Related: Former Santa Clarita Saugus Board Member Under Investigation For Fraud

As of Sunday, Dec. 12, De La Cerda and his attorney have refuted all allegations pertaining to any criminal activity.

He is expected to be arraigned on January 7 in Department 30 of the Foltz Criminal Justice Center.

Between March 2017 and 2019, De La Cerda is accused of overbilling East Los Angeles College roughly $1,575 for several hotel stays. He allegedly forged documents he submitted for reimbursement.

KHTS was subpoenaed in mid-2020, as well as the Hyatt Sacramento, for records relating to inflated financial records De La Cerda filed with East Los Angeles college in connection with the annual KHTS Sacramento Bus trip.

Besides his service as a board member for the Saugus Union School district including a term as the Board’s President, De La Cerda now works as the Vice President of Instruction at Cabrillo College and also currently serves as a member of the City of Santa Clarita’s Human Relations Roundtable.

The case remains under investigation by the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, Fraud and Cyber Crimes to determine if more charges will be filed.

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