Former Seaport Museum president pleads guilty

The former president of the Independence Seaport Museum pleaded guilty today to federal fraud and tax evasion charges, admitting that he misused museum money to fund a lavish lifestyle.

John S. Carter, 57, entered the plea before U.S. District Judge Barclay Surrick at the U.S. Courthouse in Philadelphia, just six blocks from the waterfront museum he ran for 17 years.

In court, Carter admitted that he swindled the museum out of hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of premium goods between 1997 and 2006, a time when he was paid at least $300,000 a year and lived rent-free in a museum-owned townhouse in Society Hill.

Prosecutors said Carter used museum money to build a $210,000 carriage house for his Cape Cod home and to renovate three boats worth $900,000 for his personal use.

Carter also spent museum money on dozens of smaller purchases. These included a trip to Europe, four plasma televisions, a $1,700 espresso machine, a $1,100 suit, root canal surgery, escargot dishes and $5,000 worth of tulips.

The size of the loss to the museum will be a key factor at sentencing. Under the advisory sentencing guidelines, the term would be greater if the loss exceeded $1 million and even greater if it exceeded $2.5 million.

The federal prosecutor in the case, John J. Pease, has said that Carter stole more than $1.5 million, and that he probably faced at least five years in prison.

Carter's defense lawyer, Mark E. Cedrone, has said that the loss was less and that his client likely faced less time.

In court, Cedrone said Carter was guilty but was "not prepared to admit every detail."

Carter faces a fine of up to $600,000, forfeiture of illicit gains, and restitution to the museum.

In articles published in 2004, The Inquirer spotlighted Carter's lavish pay package - and the museum's then-troubled finances.

In a court filing, prosecutors said Carter took advantage of the museum's inadequate oversight.

"He fully recognized and exploited the fact that Independence Seaport Museum had a weak and insufficient system of internal controls," the filing said.

Peter McCausland, chairman of the museum board, has said a pending civil suit against Carter gave the museum good odds of recouping much of its money.

The lawsuit, which puts the museum's loss at $2.4 million, alleges that, in 2005, the museum board uncovered evidence that Carter falsified documents and misled museum directors and employees in his efforts to conceal his illegal activities.

Carter is expected to remain free until he is sentenced Sept 4.