New York: A former treasurer of a Gujarati community non-profit association in the US has been charged with stealing $85,844 from its bank accounts. Girishcha Patel, 58, a resident of Franklin Township of Somerset county in New Jersey and a former treasurer of the Federation of Gujarati Associations in North America (FOGANA) was charged with theft related misappropriation of the funds from the bank accounts of the association, Star Ledger reported on Tuesday. FOGANA lodged a complaint with the Somerset prosecutor's office special investigations unit in January this year that Patel had misappropriated funds from the cultural organisation's bank accounts when he was treasurer from 2004 through 2012.

Without the organization's permission, Patel withdrew more than $75,000 in funds from the FOGANA bank accounts between January 2006 and March 2012 while he was treasurer and had sole access to the accounts, Somerset county prosecutor Geoffrey D Soriano said. Patel was arrested on Monday by a special investigative unit on the basis of bank records, tampered bank statements, falsified financial reports, a phony bank account number and email communications. He is lodged at the Somerset County Jail in lieu of a $75,000 cash bail set by judge Robert Reed of state superior court in Somerville.