Glenn Allen Bates, 57, was released on $10,000 bond on Tuesday. Feds: VA worker stole thousands, spent it on prostitutes, strippers

A former federal employee in Michigan has admitted to embezzling at least $150,000 from a Department of Veterans Affairs retail store and spending it all on an addiction to gambling, prostitutes and strippers, including lap dances from a stripper named “Ashley,” according to a criminal complaint filed this week in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan.

The complaint states that Glenn Allen Bates, 57, admitted to the accusations while meeting with investigators last summer. Bates told investigators that he stole from the VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System retail store that he managed, as well as its vending machines. He faces 10 years in prison if convicted.


Bates, who was released on $10,000 bond on Tuesday, was also reportedly relieved of his duties at a local high school as an assistant coach for baseball and girls basketball and as a statistician for the football team.

Bates often traveled to the VA Medical Center in Columbus, Ohio, where he helped with operations at the retail store, or canteen. He also frequented a gentleman’s club.

He “became friendly with a stripper named ‘Ashley’ and often paid her $500.00 or more per night for lap-dances,” reads the complaint from Special Agent Frederick Lane of the VA’s Office of the Inspector General. “Bates stated he also saw other strippers and prostitutes, but he primarily saw Ashley. Bates stated that he became addicted to the sexual encounters and he stole cash from the Canteen to pay for this addiction.”

According to the report, he also visited casinos in Indianapolis and Battle Creek, Michigan, where he spent some of the stolen cash.

The investigation stems from a May 2013 audit that found $478,000 missing from the retail store, which Bates managed from 2006 to 2013, according to The Detroit News.

The newspaper also reported that Bates had a long criminal record and served 18 months in the late 1970s for stealing a car.

According to the report, Bates currently works overnight at a Wal-Mart.