SABINE PARISH, La. (KALB) - Sabine Parish School Board announced on social media January 15, that a Florida man implicated in a financial fraud scheme has been extradited to Sabine Parish and booked into Sabine Parish Jail.
According to SPSB, Wiley Howell, 58, of Clearwater, Florida, was arrested on December 23, 2025, as the suspected culprit behind the theft of $251,972 of district funds.
In November 2024, SPSB was reportedly the victim of a sophisticated Business Email Compromise (BEC) phishing attack that caused an ACH payment of $251,972 to be fraudulently delivered to an unauthorized account.
SPSB had believed the funds were going towards buying weapons detections systems for schools in Sabine Parish.
The school board then notified the Louisiana Bureau of Investigations (LBI), who began investigating. SPSB said they take the protection of public funds seriously and acted as soon as the fraud was discovered. They also fully cooperated with law enforcement and have implemented more financial safeguards.
After Howell was identified as the recipient of the funds, he was arrested, extradited and then booked into the Sabine Parish jail on January 10.
Howell faces multiple felony charges.
SPSB thanked LBI for their diligent and professional work, saying they appreciate all of LBI’s efforts.