A former diversity executive at Facebook/Meta has entered a guilty plea after being charged with defrauding the social media giant of over $4,000,000 in order to ‘fund a lavish lifestyle’.
Barbara Furlow-Smiles was the leader of Facebook’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs from 2017 – 2021.
US Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan said Furlow-Smiles “abused a position of trust as a global diversity executive for Facebook to defraud the company of millions of dollars, ignoring the insidious consequences of undermining the importance of her DEI mission,” in a statement after Furrow Smiles pleaded guilty before a Georgia court last Tuesday.
A report from the New York Post detailed how Furrow Smiles submitted fake invoices which were paid for by company money for services Facebook did not receive.
These included payouts to friends and associates who would give Furrow Smiles ‘kickbacks’ from the monies received including bundles of cash delivered wrapped in t-shirts. .
“Motivated by greed, she used her time to orchestrate an elaborate criminal scheme in which fraudulent vendors paid her kickbacks in cash,” the statement from Buchanan continued, adding. “She even involved relatives, friends, and other associates in her crimes, all to fund a lavish lifestyle through fraud rather than hard and honest work.”
Details of the financial transactions include $10,000 paid to an artist for commissioned portraits and over $18,000 paid out to an unnamed preschool.
Furrow smiles would submit fraudulent invoices to Facebook after directing the company to do business with vendors she was personally acquainted with; however it is unclear if those individuals will face charges.
In a statement Meta said, “We are cooperating with law enforcement on the case regarding this former program manager, and we will continue to do so,”