A former secretary of the Los Angeles firefighters union and chairman of the organization’s nonprofit foundation pleaded not guilty Friday to grand theft and forgery for allegedly transferring nearly $83,000 from the foundation to his personal account.
Adam Walker, former secretary of United Firefighters of Los Angeles City, was charged June 15 with one felony count each of grand theft by an employee or agent and forgery related to items exceeding $950 in value.
Walker, 45, remains free on $50,000 bond posted a day after his June 17 arrest by the California Department of Justice.
“Mr. Walker’s been a long-standing firefighter with Los Angeles Fire Department — no blemish in his history and he looks forward to his day in court,” his attorney, Damian J. Martinez, said outside the downtown Los Angeles courtroom.
A joint task force from the California Department of Justice and the District Attorney’s Office discovered in June 2025 that Walker allegedly stole $82,914.24 from the nonprofit foundation between December 2022 and January 2024, according to a statement released last month by the Attorney General’s Office.
Investigators found that Walker opened a foundation bank account naming himself as the sole signer and allegedly used the account to systematically shift the foundation funds into his personal accounts via intra-bank transfers, according to the Attorney General’s Office.
He allegedly tried to conceal the theft from auditors by fabricating personal credit card reimbursements and using online services to forge fake receipts, with investigators determining that the funds were allegedly used for personal expenses, including online gambling, officials said.
“While the case is ongoing, any allegations of felony grand theft are deeply troubling and taken very seriously,” Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a statement released shortly after the charges were announced. “I’ve spoken with Chief (Jaime) Moore, and I want to thank our state and local law enforcement partners for their work to hold this person — and anyone who commits crime — accountable.”
Walker is due back in court July 29, when a date will be for a hearing to determine whether there is enough evidence to require him to stand trial.