The former director of a Toledo-area nonprofit has admitted to stealing more than $207,000 from the organization and its donors, including elderly residents. The announcement was made by Attorney General Dave Yost.
“The defendant exploited the goodwill of donors who believed in the organization’s mission,” Yost said. “Such a shameful betrayal of the community’s trust demands accountability.”
Thomas Ostrosky, 52, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to several felony charges: engaging in a pattern of corrupt activity, theft from a person in a protected class, solicitation fraud, and telecommunications fraud. Ostrosky was indicted in April and later arrested in Dade City, Florida after an investigation led by the Charitable Law Section of the Ohio Attorney General’s Office.
The case is related to Ostrosky’s management of the Lazarus Experience, a nonprofit he founded in 2017. The group described itself as a Christian ministry offering re-entry services for incarcerated men in northwest Ohio but is no longer operating.
Ostrosky will be sentenced on December 2 at Lucas County Common Pleas Court. The Lucas County Prosecutor’s Office assigned prosecution duties to Yost’s Charitable Law Section.
Members of the public who suspect improper use of charitable funds or fraudulent fundraising are encouraged to contact the Ohio Attorney General’s Office at 800-282-0515 or through charitable.ohioago.gov.
