Stockton Unified Trustee AngelAnn Flores arrested after investigation into insurance fraud, theft

Stockton Unified School District Trustee AngelAnn Flores was arrested on Friday following a months-long investigation into insurance fraud and theft of public funds, authorities said.

Flores now faces multiple felony charges, according to the San Joaquin County Sheriff's Office.

Those charges include theft of public funds by using her credit card to purchase fuel and food for her personal gain; grand theft of money exceeding $950; embezzlement by a public official via use of her credit card; and insurance fraud for knowingly filing a false insurance claim as a result of a non-SUSD-related vehicle accident.

In a statement Friday, the San Joaquin County District Attorney's Office said the charges stemmed from a complaint from the school district.

In November 2023, a search warrant obtained by The Record revealed that in April 2023, former Interim Superintendent Traci Miller contacted the sheriff’s department looking to discuss “issues of concern regarding SUSD board members, specifically the board president."

Flores served as Stockton Unified's board president in 2023.

The sheriff's investigation also appeared based in part on an interview with Stockton Unified’s Chief Business Official, Joann Juarez.

According to the warrant, Juarez told investigators last May she had noticed “some questionable expenditures coming from district credit card use belonging to all board members, including Flores,” following an audit of expense reports.

Deputies raided Flores' home on Nov. 14, 2023, and seized two iPhones, an iPad, a MacBook Air laptop and documents belonging to Flores, the warrant revealed. Detectives also asked Google and Meta (owner of Facebook) for access to Flores' online accounts.

"An analysis was done of all seven of the trustees' district credit card usage, and the conclusion is Trustee Flores' non-compliance to the district's credit card policy was intentional, egregious, and clearly for personal gain," the sheriff's office stated Friday.

Sheriff's officials also stated that the other trustees were found to be in compliance with their credit card usage.

The findings were presented to the district attorney's office. After prosecutors reviewed the evidence, they determined that an arrest warrant for the four felony counts was appropriate.

"The sheriff's office wants to make our stance clear ... regardless of dollar amount, public officials are expected to conduct themselves with high ethical standards and even more so as the board president," the sheriff's office stated. "These acts of theft and deceit were discovered to have occurred in both the official and unofficial capacity of Flores during a time of holding an official position that allowed her to influence and make decisions that directly affected the students, families, and taxpayers of the Stockton Unified School District."

Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez said the district has no additional information on the criminal proceedings, but emphasized that it is her job "to focus on our students, their education, and the proper use of public funds."

"In order to restore public trust and ensure fiscal transparency, the entire SUSD Board of Education relinquished their credit cards effective Sept. 14, 2023, two months into my tenure at my request," Rodriguez said. "We will keep our focus on our students and providing the education that will provide them the futures they deserve."

Bail for Flores has been set at $175,000. She is expected in court early next week.

Flores' arrest comes amid a larger investigation into wrongdoing at Stockton Unified by the district attorney's office, the FBI, and the U.S. Department of Justice. That investigation was initiated from a state Fiscal Crisis and Management Assistance Team report which scrutinized a $7.3 million district contract approved without proper bidding in August 2021, and other alleged misconduct.

Flores was the lone vote against the contract, approved during the tenure of former Superintendent John Ramirez Jr. and former Board President Cecilia Mendez.

Since announcing the investigation on April 23, 2023, the agencies have remained silent on its status.

Record reporter Aaron Leathley contributed to this report.

Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow.

This article originally appeared on The Record: Stockton Unified trustee arrested after investigation into insurance fraud, theft