$500,000 Bond Set For Idaho Man Facing Charge Of Embezzlement

Bond has been set at $500,000 for an Idaho Falls man who faces a charge of embezzling an undisclosed amount of money from Frank VanderSloot, president of Melaleuca.

Kendall William Cameron, 36, was arraigned in Bonneville County Monday. A preliminary hearing was scheduled for April 28.

Melaleuca is a manufacturer and marketer of vitamins, personal care and household items. VanderSloot said the money involved came from personal funds and did not involve the company.

He said he has given Cameron money to invest. He did not disclose how much money he has given Cameron, but police said when they searched Cameron’s home last week, they found $450,000 in cash in a suitcase.

In September 1996, Cameron pleaded guilty to six counts of securities fraud for defrauding nine people he met through his work at a Merrill Lynch office in Bellevue, Wash., and his church. Authorities said just under $100,000 was involved in the Washington case.

In King County, Wash., Cameron was sentenced to five months at a “work ethics camp,” in lieu of a 22-month jail term, said King County Deputy Prosecutor Scott Peterson.