Ex-VA worker accused in theft, sex scandal

A former government employee and high school baseball coach is accused of embezzling at least $150,000 from the Veterans Administration and spending it on sex dates with a stripper named Ashley, $500 lap dances and gambling, according to criminal complaint filed today in U.S. District Court.

Glenn Alan Bates, 57, of Saline, admitted to all this, the complaint states, during an interview last summer with federal agents in his living room, telling them he stole from vending machines and VA retail stores to help feed an addiction to sex with prostitutes and nude entertainers.

Bates, though, kept his alleged scheme secret as he was a longtime figure in Saline High School athletics until this alleged crime was revealed. According to The Saline Post, where Bates often wrote sports stories, Bates was an assistant coach for the varsity baseball team, varsity girls' basketball team and statistician for the Saline varsity football team. "Effective immediately, Bates is no longer affiliated with Saline Area Schools," The Saline Post reported Tuesday.

According to court documents, Bates' troubles started around 2008, when he began to frequent a gentlemen's club in Columbus, Ohio, called Centerfold.

"Bates became friendly with a stripper named Ashley … he also saw other strippers and prostitutes, but he primarily saw Ashley," Special Agent Frederick Lane of the VA Office of Inspector General wrote in the complaint. "Bates stated he became addicted to the sexual encounters and he stole cash from the Canteen to pay for this addiction."

Bates, a former Canteen store manager at the VA in Ann Arbor, was arraigned in U.S. District Court Tuesday and freed on a $10,000 bond. While working for the government, he stole along the way, alleged the VA Office of Inspector General, which claims Bates ran a scheme for years that targeted three areas: He stole from the sales of embroidered, commemorative military hats, he raided vending machine sales and he swiped cash from the Canteen.

His court appointed attorney could not be reached for comment.

According to Lane's affidavit, Bates came under the radar of the Office of Inspector General in 2013, after an audit revealed more than $478,000 in potential losses from the VA Canteen.

When investigators showed up at Bates' home last August, Lane wrote, Bates let them in and confessed to the following:

"Bates stated that he was aware of the audit … and admitted that he stole cash from the Canteen, but he disputed the amounts listed," Lane wrote. "Bates estimated he stole approximately $150,000."

According to the complaint, Bates admitted to stealing $100,000 in cash from the sales of commemorative military hats and roughly $600 a month from vending machine sales for about three years.

During the interview, records show, Bates also explained how he spent a lot of the stolen money.

A big chunk was spent at Centerfold, a gentleman's club in Columbus that featured nude entertainers. Bates first went there in 2008 and became addicted over the years, the complaint said. He befriended a stripper named Ashley, often paid her $500 or more per night for lap dances, and had sex in his hotel room with her and paid her for it, the complaint said.

Though Bates also saw other strippers and prostitutes, he primarily saw Ashley, records show.

Sex dates aside, Bates also was a gambler, the complaint said, noting he spent some of his ill-gotten proceeds at casinos in Indianapolis and Battle Creek.

Contact Tresa Baldas: tbaldas@freeepress.com