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 A Cuyahoga County grand jury indicted Sifford's son, Craig Sifford,
48, and daughter-in-law, Sandra Sifford, 48, both of Brecksville,
Ohio, with spending money meant for Charles Sifford's care on such
items as travel, dining, clothes, jewelry and landscaping between
2010 and 2013, according to a statement released by the Ohio
attorney general's office and the Cuyahoga County prosecutor's
office.
A spokesman for the attorney general's offense did not comment on
whether or how Charles Sifford's care was affected by the theft the
family members were charged with.
Sifford, who died in February in Cleveland at the age of 92, was the
first African-American to compete in PGA-sanctioned events in 1961.
He was often compared to Jackie Robinson, who broke baseball's color
barrier.
Tiger Woods has often credited Sifford for paving the way for Woods'
own golfing path, and affectionately called him 'grandpa.' Sifford
was inducted into the World Golf Hall of Fame in 2004 and was
awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom this past November.
An investigation was launched prior to Sifford's Feb. 3 death after
a complaint was made to law enforcement alleging Craig Sifford was
abusing his role as his father's power of attorney, officials said
in a statement.
After examining volumes of financial accounts, agents with the Ohio
attorney general's office found that the couple, who are now
divorced, misspent more than $1 million belonging to the golfer,
officials said.
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Both Craig Sifford and Sandra Sifford were indicted on three counts
of theft, one count of money laundering and one count of
unauthorized use of property, officials said.
Sandra Sifford also was charged with receiving stolen property,
officials said.
"Charles Sifford, who is credited for courageously breaking the
professional golf color barrier, served as an inspiration to so many
people and tragically ended up being financially exploited by
members of his family," Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine said in
the statement.
An attorney for Craig and Sandra Sifford could not be reached to
comment.
(Reporting by Ben Klayman in Detroit; Editing by Sandra Maler)
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