Charged with five counts of wire and bank fraud, Jonathan Weinhagen made his first appearance this afternoon in federal court in downtown St. Paul.
You may recall that Weinhagen had served as head of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce from 2016 until June 2024. Twin Cities Business reported back in August 2024,
When the Minneapolis Regional Chamber announced in June that it was seeking a new CEO, the organization’s former leader Jonathan Weinhagen barely got a passing mention.
Apparently, the Chamber had hired a prominent law firm (Jones Day) in April 2024 to look into Weinhagen’s tenure. The Chamber’s 2023 tax return indicates that Weinhagen was paid almost $235,000 in salary and received $43,000 in other compensation. In a footnote to the 2023 return, the Chamber noted,
IN 2024, THE ORGANIZATION BECAME AWARE OF A MATERIAL DIVERSION OF ASSETS OF THE CHAMBER INVOLVING TRANSACTIONS BETWEEN 2020 AND 2022. THE DIVERSION OF ASSETS IS ESTIMATED TO BE $152,364 AND INVOLVED CASH PAYMENTS MADE FOR UNSUBSTANTIATED PURPOSES TO AN UNKNOWN VENDOR AND CASH PAYMENTS MADE FOR UNSUBSTANTIATED BUSINESS PURPOSES FOR TRAVEL.
The Minnesota Star Tribune reported back in August 2024,
Minneapolis chamber faces $500K shortfall; CEO left after internal financial investigation
The Star Tribune noted at the time,
A source told the Star Tribune that law enforcement authorities have been notified.
The fruits of that referral were unsealed this afternoon. The indictment alleges that Weinhagen created a fictional company under the alias James Sullivan. The Feds allege Weinhagen embellezed more than $200,000 from the Chamber over the years.
As part of the scheme, they allege Weingarten faked the death of the nonexistent Sullivan, attributing his nondemise to pancreatic cancer.
As for the travel fraud mentioned in the Chamber tax return footnote, it apparently involved a Hawaiian vacation.
To add insult to injury, the Feds allege that Weinhagen stole $30,000 meant for a Crime Stoppers reward on two unsolved north Minneapolis murders.
The Feds also allege a 2025 bank fraud effort.
As of this afternoon, Weinhagen is still listed as a member of the Mounds View Public Schools board.
His term expires in January 2028.
There’s more to life than a little money, ya know. Don’tcha know that?