‘If you have enough money, you can get out of it’: Gee questions whether former Wenatchee CEO who embezzled $24M will face real time

Patrick Bucknum, a former CEO of a healthcare clinic in Wenatchee, pleaded guilty to an embezzlement scheme after he moved $24 million from the organization’s accounts into his own investment account to fund his investments, purchases of luxury vehicles, and to cover losses.

Gee Scott and Ursula Reutin, co-hosts of “The Gee and Ursula Show” on KIRO Newsradio, brainstormed what the CEO’s sentence should be for the crime, if he is to serve one, and wondered if there was any possibility of avoiding a sentence entirely.

“He lost big, and as his losses were racking up, he allegedly stole even more money trying to win it back,” Ursula said. “What would be an appropriate sentence, and what are your thoughts on what happened here?”

“Fifteen plus years,” Gee responded. “For so long, we have heard about white-collar crimes. These things happen, and what has happened in the past is that they go to the minimum security place with a nice little barracks and a country club. Then they’re out in less than a year. Then they have restitution, they pay those things back, and however that goes. It’s crazy.”

Gee broke down how a lack of oversight can lead even honest people astray

The suspect’s initial plan was to invest the stolen funds and eventually return what was stolen while keeping the profits. Gee explained how quickly the plan unraveled after the losses began to mount up.

“When there’s no checks and balances, even honest people can make bad mistakes,” Gee said. “That register, someone takes a $20 bill out of it to cover a bet real quick, and they win. They put the $20 back, and nothing happens. Now do this over and over again, but you take the money, and oopsie, you lose. Now you take $40 to cover the bet, but you lose it again. Now it’s $80, and before you know it, it spirals. This happened because of no checks and balances. Now, how about the organizations that get taxpayer money?”

Hosts debate whether wealth could keep the CEO out of prison

Gee polled the room and asked if Ursula believed the suspect could receive a pardon for this kind of white-collar crime, even though it was a multi-million-dollar scheme.

“What could he do to get out of not serving a long sentence for this?” Gee asked. “There’s one strategy. You guys haven’t been seeing people getting pardoned in this country?”

“That’s what I thought, call people in high places,” Ursula responded.

“Yeah, that’s the strategy today,” Gee said. “If you have enough money, you go ahead and maybe donate to certain causes, and there will potentially be a pardon for you. Unless I’m wrong, unless that hasn’t been happening in this country. There is a price. We can all agree, it doesn’t matter what side of politics you’re on, there is a price when you commit these types of crimes. If you have enough money, you can get out of it.”

Watch the full discussion in the video above.

Listen to Gee and Ursula on “The Gee and Ursula Show” weekday mornings from 9 am to 12 pm on KIRO Newsradio.