Capital Public Radio has sued its former general manager, accusing him of stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from the station to fund a lofty lifestyle filled with lavish overseas trips, renovate his home residence, pay his children’s university tuition and more.

The station, an auxiliary of Sacramento State, in a civil lawsuit filed last month is seeking $900,000 in damages from former general manager Jun Reina and for his 4,500-square-foot West Sacramento home to be placed in a trust.

Lawyers for CapRadio allege that Reina siphoned at least $372,397.68 from the station to “enrich himself” during the more than 10-year stretch in which he held multiple executive roles at the station. The alleged misappropriation included buying vehicles and entertainment tickets, fine dining and paying for personal health care expenses.

“CPR’s (CapRadio’s) reliance on defendant’s misrepresentations was a substantial factor in harming CPR,” the lawsuit read.

Chris Bruno, CapRadio’s chief marketing and revenue officer, said the station is pursuing all avenues for remediation and accountability.

“Our community has stood by us and deserves nothing less,” he said.

Reina even paid his mortgage and property tax bills, the lawsuit alleges, for what is described in a Zillow listing as a five-bedroom, five-bathroom, 4,498-square-foot home in a “prestigious” gated community where “luxury living meets exclusive amenities.”

The allegations in the lawsuit align with newly released documents showing that a corporate American Express card in Reina’s name was used for about $450,000 in purchases that auditors said they could not link to corresponding receipts or a legitimate business purpose.

Large portions of that total were spent on international travel, hotels, expensive restaurant meals, golf club membership dues and other personal expenses, The Sacramento Bee first reported Thursday.

“Defendant further misled CPR by providing CPR’s Board of Directors with information regarding CPR’s finances that was inaccurate and incomplete,” the lawsuit continued.

The suit was filed Dec. 19 in Yolo Superior Court; Reina’s home, which has been listed for sale since October and at its current price since November, is in Yolo County. The suit’s filing was first reported Thursday by Capital Public Radio journalists.

A Zillow listing with a $1,370,000 asking price said the home includes “refined updates” such as a custom-built, 100-bottle wine cellar, a steam room and a 3,000-gallon koi fish pond.

Misappropriated CapRadio funds totaled more than $105,000 in physical improvements to Reina’s home, the lawsuit alleged, further describing the renovations as “extensive” and “expansive.”

Transactions flagged in the American Express statements under the category of “Home goods and services” totaled more than $74,000 from 2017 to 2020. Among the largest: garden supply purchases of $26,090 and $13,106, both made in December 2017; HVAC purchases of $10,000 in March 2019 and $6,439 in and November 2019; a $6,237 purchase of “BBQ and Pool Supplies” in February 2018; and a $4,760 purchase marked “Home Improvement” in January 2018.

“CPR is informed and believes that defendant intends to leave the state and abscond with the illegal proceeds from the sale of his West Sacramento residence to defraud his creditors, including but not limited to CPR,” CapRadio attorneys wrote.

Reina and his attorneys did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Reina resigned from CapRadio in June 2023, a few months before a scathing audit was released that September by the California State University system that found widespread financial mismanagement. Layoffs and programming cuts ensued at the station, which Sacramento State President Luke Wood said he feared would be financially in solvent by January 2024. The university and station have since said CapRadio’s financial situation has improved.

Who is Jun Reina?

Reina first came to CapRadio in 2007 as chief financial officer. He took on dual roles as CFO and chief operating officer in 2013, the lawsuit says, before his promotion in 2020 to executive vice president and general manager. Reina made a salary of $253,080 in the fiscal year ending June 2022, CapRadio tax filings show.

The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office has also been investigating financial improprieties at the station. A Sheriff’s Office spokesperson said last week that the investigation remains ongoing.

The lawsuit lists breach of fiduciary duty, constructive fraud, conversion and intentional misrepresentation as its causes of action.

The suit is the first formal step the station has taken against Reina to regain some of its money after accumulating debt by signing leases for two downtown buildings. The station was still $10 million in debt by June 2024, the end of its most recent full fiscal year, as it climbed out from the red.

Following a request from the newspaper’s lawyers, The Sacramento Bee received from a list of cash expenses allegedly spent by Reina which appeared to show his penchant for travel. He appeared to use CapRadio funds dollars for grand trips to Fiji, Dubai and Hawaii, according to the expenses included in a separate forensic examination released in August.

Sacramento State had excluded the list of transactions in the August report published to its website as a redaction, but released the documents this month weeks. Lanaya Lewis, a spokesperson for Sacramento State, did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the lawsuit.

The next court date is April 21 for a case management conference.

Funds recovered by the station in the civil case will be put back toward CapRadio’s mission: public service, Bruno said.