The Brief
- The owner of New Horizons School has been charged with multiple felonies including wage theft, tax evasion and embezzlement.
- Victor Dawson, who was also the school’s principal, as well as the principal of Mission Hills Middle School in Castro Valley, is the subject of a civil case seeking nearly $688,000 in penalties.
OAKLAND, Calif. – The owner of New Horizons School in Newark has been charged with multiple felonies including wage theft, tax evasion and embezzlement, Alameda County District Attorney Ursula Jones Dickson announced on Friday.
The charges brought against 52-year-old Victor Dawson, who was the principal of New Horizons School as well as Mission Hills Middle School in Castro Valley, stem from a 2024 complaint alleging wage theft against 47 teachers and other staff members.
The charges
Dawson is facing two counts of felony wage theft, two counts of felony tax evasion, one count of misdemeanor tax evasion and one count of felony embezzlement. He was arraigned at the Wiley Manuel Courthouse in Oakland on Jan. 20, 2026.
In addition to the allegations that Dawson stole wages from 47 teachers and staff members, he is alleged to have embezzled retirement contributions from six teachers by deducting money for their retirement savings from their paychecks and using it for his own benefit.…