Former Minneapolis Chamber CEO Admits Stealing Reward Money for Unsolved Child Murders

A man has pleaded guilty to stealing reward money for the unsolved murders of children.

Jonathan Weinhagen, also known as “James Sullivan,” age 42, pled guilty today in U.S. District Court to one count of Mail Fraud, announced U.S. Attorney Daniel N. Rosen.

From December 2019 through June 2024, defendant Weinhagen abused his position as President and CEO of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce to defraud and embezzle hundreds of thousands of dollars from the Chamber and its business members in several ways.

First, Weinhagen stole reward money for the unsolved murders of children. In May 2021, two minor children were killed, and a third child was injured, in a series of shootings in North Minneapolis. On May 21, 2021, the Chamber of Commerce contributed $30,000 to Crime Stoppers of Minnesota to fund three separate $10,000 rewards for information leading to the arrest and prosecution of the persons responsible for the shootings. Approximately one year later, Weinhagen emailed the president of Crime Stoppers of Minnesota to inquire about the status of the rewards. When he learned that the rewards were unclaimed, Weinhagen asked that the $30,000 be returned to the Chamber of Commerce because it had “made a commitment to [its] investors to deploy the resources into the North Minneapolis Community.” Weinhagen told Crime Stoppers to send the refund check to Weinhagen’s home, which Weinhagen falsely represented as the Chamber of Commerce’s new address. On June 6, 2022, Crime Stoppers of Minnesota sent the $30,000 check to Weinhagen’s home. Weinhagen stole this money and used it to pay his personal expenses.

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