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Attorney General Sues Ex-Westfield State President

Evan Dobelle, who retired last year as Westfield State University President after the board of trustees put him on paid leave amid allegations he had recklessly spent university funds
WSU
Evan Dobelle, who retired last year as Westfield State University President after the board of trustees put him on paid leave amid allegations he had recklessly spent university funds
Evan Dobelle, who retired last year as Westfield State University President after the board of trustees put him on paid leave amid allegations he had recklessly spent university funds
Credit WSU

The Massachusetts Attorney General has filed a lawsuit against the former president of Westfield State University Evan Dobelle

A complaint filed in state court in Boston Thursday by Massachusetts Atty. Gen. Martha Coakley accuses Dobelle of spending up to $100,000 in school funds on personals purchases, trips, and meals at high end restaurants. 

The suit alleges he violated state laws and university policies by knowingly submitting false claims to Westfield State for personal expenses totaling $59,000.  

The complaint alleges Dobelle received $39,000 for travel he falsely claimed was for  official university business.

Dobelle is anxious to refute allegations that he spent up to $100,000 of school funds on personal purchases and vacations with family and friends, according to attorney Ross Garber.

" At all times Evan Dobelle acted in the best interests of Westfield State University. He looks forward to the whole truth  coming out and to reclaiming his reputation."

The suit  seeks unspecified damages, civil penalties, investigative costs and attorney’s fees.

The suit comes just one week after the Massachusetts Inspector General issued a scathing report that detailed dozens of  examples of Dobelle using university funds for  personal purposes.  Inspector General Glenn Cunha, in an interview, described Dobelle's behavior as " outrageous."

Attorney General Sues Ex-Westfield State President

Copyright 2014 WAMC Northeast Public Radio

Paul Tuthill is WAMC’s Pioneer Valley Bureau Chief. He’s been covering news, everything from politics and government corruption to natural disasters and the arts, in western Massachusetts since 2007. Before joining WAMC, Paul was a reporter and anchor at WRKO in Boston. He was news director for more than a decade at WTAG in Worcester. Paul has won more than two dozen Associated Press Broadcast Awards. He won an Edward R. Murrow award for reporting on veterans’ healthcare for WAMC in 2011. Born and raised in western New York, Paul did his first radio reporting while he was a student at the University of Rochester.

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