Skater gets scammed

Chief Financial Officer of MTV’s skateboarder, Ryan Sheckler has been charged with embezzlement. Matthew Mercuro was arrested and charged on Friday, Nov. 13 with embezzling over $365, 000 from the professional skater. He is currently being held on $400, 000 bail in Huntington Beach where he has been charged with two felony counts of grand theft. He must prove that his bail money comes from a legitimate and legal source before being granted bail. Mercuro could face up to six years and eight months in prison if the allegations prove to be true.

Sheckler, the Life of Ryan star, hired Mercuro to be the CFO of the two companies, granting him access to the accounts of the two businesses, Ryan Sheckler Rips LLC and Sheckler Merch 2 LL. He was caught when suspicious transfers from the two accounts were reported during a review of the companies’ finances. It was even more suspicious that the money was going into his personal accounts, the account of his wife, and the account of a friend. The terrible thief was bound to be caught sooner or later.

What’s worse, Mercuro is said to have been Sheckler’s trusted family friend and to have known the skater for years. He was employed by Sheckler from June 2008 to April 2009. No word on how the pro-skater is handling the situation.

The thing about white collar crime is that it affects more people than say, a street crime. There are more people who are impacted and potentially get hurt. As a society, we tend to focus on street crime and other horrific crimes rather than corporate or white collar crime. It is our responsibility to focus on these white collar and corporate crimes.