Why Former 'AGT' Winner Terry Fator Was Linked To A $1 Million Embezzlement Accusation?

Summary

• Terry Fator, former America's Got Talent winner, faced a serious financial scandal due to embezzlement allegations against employee Vincent Souza.
• Vincent and a payroll supervisor allegedly misused company funds for personal expenses, including luxury cars and vacations, totaling over $500,000.
• Fator, who now owns his own theater, also sued former manager John McEntee over financial disputes, following a previous settlement in 2010.

Former America's Got Talent winner Terry Fator, whose life took some interesting turns after the show, has found himself thrust into a serious scandal. Thanks to his engaging performances on the Las Vegas Strip, Terry has been able to become rich and famous enough that he was able to hire several employees, but it was not all good news.

Thanks (or NO thanks) to one of those former employees, Terry became embroiled in a serious financial scandal involving allegations of embezzlement.

Terry Fator's Former Employee Was Accused Of Embezzling Nearly $1 Million From Him

After many years of having a residency at The Mirage, Terry Fator moved his show to New York-New York. During the transition process, Terry's team unearthed significant financial discrepancies.

Wanting to protect himself and his fortune, Terry took legal action against those he believed were mismanaging his hard-earned wealth. This financial drama has resulted in headlines linking Terry with serious financial crimes.

In September 2023, a CBS News affiliate called 8 News Now reported on the embezzlement case against Terry's former employee. That article revealed that Terry reported the potential embezzlement to the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police in October 2021.

Terry Fator now owns his own theater in Las Vegas where fans can watch him and his puppets perform.

Prior to calling the police, Terry reported the potential embezzlement to the FBI, but they opted not to prosecute. Instead, the FBI sought arbitration with Terry's accounting firm. However, the FBI's action didn't resolve the deeper, underlying financial discrepancies.

After the police investigated, they filed charges against Terry's former employee, Vincent Souza. 8 News Now revealed the details behind the charges that Vincent was facing.

The allegations focused on Vincent and an unnamed payroll supervisor. The two of them were suspected of orchestrating a scheme to siphon funds from Terry’s reported $160 million fortune through several different means.

According to 8 News Now, a detailed examination of the company's financial records was conducted. That investigation revealed that Terry's former employees allegedly embezzled his money by misusing business credit cards and giving unauthorized pay increases.

Over two years, Vincent's annual salary inflated from $150,000 to $200,000. Similarly, the payroll supervisor’s pay rose dramatically from $65,000 to $140,000. These salary adjustments were allegedly executed without the knowledge or permission of Terry.

Following the police's investigation, they believed that both individuals used company credit cards to pay for personal expenses. According to the legal documents that 8 News Now reported on, Vincent and the unnamed payroll supervisor spent a staggering amount on those credit cards.

"It is estimated that he ran more than $500,000 through his account and charged back the company through checks written out to Vincent, from Vincent."

8 News Now's report revealed some of the things that Vincent and the payroll supervisor allegedly charged on business accounts.

They were accused of charging personal vacations to Hawaii, Europe, and Disneyland to the company's accounts. The pair's brazen misuse of funds also included luxury cars and extensive spending on sports and entertainment tickets.

8 News Now also reported that Vincent was accused of using company funds for a down payment on a Tesla. The outlet also revealed that “tens of thousands” from business accounts were paid for season tickets to the Vegas Golden Knights.

Vincent was even accused of placing a security deposit on a residence in Florida. The deposit was paid using Disney Vacation Points that Terry allegedly used business funds to acquire. Home improvements were also paid for, and luxury items were bought under the guise of business expenses.

Finally, Vincent was also accused of using Terry's business accounts to support a side business in hula shows. This side business was owned by Vincent, so he received its profits.

Based on the allegations that Vincent was facing, he was charged with four counts of theft above $3,500 according to 8 News Now.

The outlet's report featured a response to the allegations from Vincent’s attorney, Jack Buchanan. Vincent's lawyer emphasized his client's right to a fair trial.

"No different than any other client, irrespective of the celebrity of the alleged victim, Vincent is presumed innocent and I believe will remain as such."

As of the time of this writing, the legal case against Vincent has yet to go to trial.

According to a December 2010 CNN report, Dane Cook's half-brother and sister-in-law were accused of embezzling money from the comedian. The pair were sentenced to both serve years behind bars and were ordered to repay $12 million to Dane. However, it seems extremely unlikely he will ever see that money.

Sadly, Terry isn't the first celebrity who has dealt with having their funds allegedly stolen by trusted employees. Past cases that revolved around funds being embezzled from celebrities have led to convictions.

Terry Fator Sued Another One Of His Former Employees

Considering how successful he has been, America's Got Talent's wealthy judges were smart to see something in Terry Fator. However, it appears that Terry doesn't have the same ability to see who the right people for a job are. On top of having former employees steal from him, Terry has had to take legal actions against his former manager.

In July 2014, the Las Vegas Review-Journal reported on a lawsuit that Terry filed against his former manager, John McEntee. Terry and John's 2014 lawsuit came after the former business partners previously reached a settlement in 2010.

According to the lawsuit, John was claiming that Terry owed him money because of that settlement. Terry claimed in his lawsuit that John had "already received well in excess of $10 million" and he wasn't entitled to any more money.

Terry's lawsuit also claimed that John was seeking more money based on a "purposefully distorted mischaracterization of the terms of a settlement agreement".

At the time of the lawsuit, the Las Vegas Review-Journal received the following comment from John about Terry's lawsuit. “I don’t like to comment on anything that guy says or does.” John also told the outlet that he knew about the lawsuit but hadn't read it.

Even though the lawsuit was filed in 2014, the outcome of the legal dispute hasn't been reported to the public.