One of the University of Arizonaβs longest-
serving professors has been indicted by a grand jury on suspicion of defrauding the school.
John A. Marchello, 78, faces prosecution on 10 felony counts after money was misappropriated from a student-run meat store he oversaw on Tucsonβs north side, court records show.
Marchello, a tenured professor of animal sciences who has worked at UA for nearly 50 years, was indicted on one count of theft of property or services over $25,000; one count of fraudulent schemes; one count of computer tampering and seven counts of forgery.
The April 7 indictment does not include a total for how much money has gone missing. A search warrant obtained by campus police detectives last fall put the suspected total at more than $130,000.
Public institutions are supposed to have measures in place to prevent fraud by employees who handle money. UA spokesman Chris Sigurdson said the university has tightened its procedures to prevent future losses but wouldnβt specify what changes were made.
Marchelloβs indictment comes about five months after campus police searched his offices at the UA βmeat lab,β where students sell butchered livestock to the public at the schoolβs agriculture center on North Campbell Avenue.
The livestock is raised by UA students as part of their education in animal husbandry.
Detectives seized cash, computers, inventory logs, invoices and sales receipts in November after receiving a tip from an insider who said meat store resources were being diverted to private use.
Marchello, whose UA salary is about $106,000 a year, remains on the schoolβs payroll. He is on paid administrative leave but officials wonβt say when the leave began.
Sigurdson, the UA spokesman, said the start date for the paid leave is a part of Marchelloβs personnel file thatβs protected from public disclosure. The Arizona Daily Star has filed a public records request for the information.
Sigurdson said the meat store remains open for business on Fridays with operating hours from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.
