A former city of Clemson official has been arrested and charged with embezzling public funds, according to SLED (South Carolina Law Enforcement Division).

Thomas Alexander Sparacino, 61, was charged with Embezzlement of public funds, value more than $10,000. He is the former finance director for the city of Clemson.

According to the arrest affidavit, Sparacino allegedly “use[d] credit cards issued to him by the City of Clemson for purchases and charges of a personal nature and then use[d] City of Clemson funds to pay off the balances on the credit cards.”
A city of Clemson audit found Sparacino allegedly embezzled around $125,000 in public funds between June 2011 and February 2017. 
According to the affidavit, SLED discovered expenses for “vehicle repairs completed at Jaguar, Porsche and Volvo of Greenville for vehicles registered to Sparacino, device and iTunes purchases from Apple, merchandise purchases from Amazon, and monthly cellular service charges from AT&T and Verizon Wireless.”

​Sparacino was booked into the Pickens County Detention Center early Tuesday morning, court records show. He was released on personal recognizance.

The case will be prosecuted by the 13th Circuit Solicitors Office. If convicted, Sparacino faces up to 10 years in prison and “a fine in proportion to the amount of embezzled funds.”

His next court appearance is scheduled for Jan. 18, 2018.