Charleston, S.C. — An economics professor at a South Carolina Baptist university was charged with fraud April 5 after federal authorities discovered $134 million missing from investment funds he managed. Albert E. Parish Jr., 49, initially claimed amnesia and reportedly checked into a nearby hospital. He has since surrendered to the FBI and is being held without bail, according to The Post and Courier, Charleston’s daily newspaper.
Parish, an economics professor at Charleston Southern University (CSU), and two of his investment companies face five counts of civil fraud filed by the federal Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The FBI has also started investigating Parish, who used to advise the Charleston Chamber of Commerce and write financial columns for The Post and Courier.
Area residents have filed three separate civil lawsuits against Parish and his affiliates over the charges. The school filed suit against him and Parish Economics LLC investment firm April 5.
The SEC complaint said Parish deceived investors and placed false information on the Parish Economics Web site. The SEC said the "accounts represented to hold millions of dollars of assets for the funds do not hold significant funds" and that Parish exaggerated the return on the investments.
University officials said the projected loss of $10.6 million in investments, which totaled 15 percent of the school’s $71 million in assets, would not affect personnel or student scholarships.
The school’s board of trustees, in a special session April 17, mapped out a five-year plan for "moving forward." They also approved the establishment of a task force to review the university’s investment policies and procedures. As its first order of business, the board unanimously affirmed Jairy C. Hunter Jr., CSU president for 23 years, and "his continued leadership." The board also reaffirmed its Oct. 31 decision to extend Hunter’s contract through the 2012–2013 academic year.
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