Former executive director who embezzled over $500,000 from non-profit serving Oakland youth sentenced to more than two years in prison

Date: Sept. 24, 2025 Contact: [email protected]

OAKLAND - Howard Solomon, also known as Solomon Howard, was sentenced today to 27 months in federal prison in connection with a years-long scheme in which he stole at least $549,000 from his former employer, the non-profit East Oakland Boxing Association (EOBA). He was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $549,132.74 to the EOBA and $287,185 to the Internal Revenue Service. U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers handed down the sentence.

Solomon of Oakland pleaded guilty on April 23, 2025, to one count of mail fraud and one count of tax evasion for tax year 2018.

From 2017 until 2021, Solomon served as the executive director of EOBA, a non-profit that provides after-school and summer programming to East Oakland children and families, including tutoring and literacy support, boxing lessons and coaching, and internship opportunities for teenagers. Solomon embezzled at least $549,000 from his former employer and diverted funds and donations to EOBA to pay for personal expenses, including a vacation rental and a Ford Explorer.

"Howard Solomon used his position of trust to steal from kids and working families and threatened the very existence of an organization that is and must remain an important part of the East Oakland community. With this sentence, he is rightly being held accountable for his unspeakable greed," said United States Attorney Craig H. Missakian.

"Mr. Solomon's embezzlement scheme not only victimized the East Oakland Boxing Association, but also deprived low-income, high-risk children in East Oakland of the internships, mentoring, and boxing programs the organization offers," said Linda Nguyen, special agent in charge of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) Oakland field office. "While Mr. Solomon siphoned funds from a nonprofit to serve his own greed, IRS-CI agents expertly sifted through evidence and followed the money in pursuit of justice."

Among the misappropriated funds was a $50,000 donation made to EOBA that Solomon diverted into a personal account. The $50,000 donation was made to EOBA by a television studio in connection with a December 2019 appearance by Stephen Curry and Ayesha Curry on the Ellen DeGeneres Show for a segment known as "Ellen's Greatest Night of Giveaways," during which the Currys delivered various gifts to EOBA, including the donation check.

Solomon failed to disclose the money he embezzled from EOBA as income and misstated expenses associated with two alleged businesses Solomon claimed lost money in his tax filings for the years 2017 through 2021. In total, Solomon evaded the payment of approximately $287,185 in taxes.

In addition to the prison term and restitution, Judge Gonzalez Rogers also sentenced the defendant to a three-year period of supervised release. The defendant was ordered to begin serving his sentence on Oct. 30, 2025.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Thomas R. Green is prosecuting this case with the assistance of Amala James and Alycee Lane. This prosecution is the result of an investigation by IRS-CI.

IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code, obtaining a 90% federal conviction rate. The agency has 19 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.