A former vice president at Pleasant Hill's tourism promotion agency is facing felony charges after investigators say she siphoned off roughly $55,000 through a scheme involving overcharged invoices and kickbacks that stretched on for nearly three years. Sibongile Viola Ncube, who worked remotely as Vice President of Sales and Marketing for the Pleasant Hill Tourism Improvement District, is accused of pocketing unauthorized payments tied to bills paid by the district between September 2022 and July 2025.
The Pleasant Hill Police Department reported that Ncube faces multiple felony charges connected to the embezzlement and bribery allegations, according to KRON4. The Pleasant Hill Tourism Improvement District operates publicly as Visit Pleasant Hill, an agency that, according to the Contra Costa Herald, was established by the Pleasant Hill City Council back in January 2017 to assess local lodging businesses and fund the city's visitor economy. Though it was created by city council resolution and collects assessment revenue from hotel stays, the district functions independently of the municipal government, the outlet notes.
A Contractor Sounded the Alarm
The case only came to light after a contracted company flagged suspicious accounting to the city in July 2025, an alert that set off a 12-month investigation by Pleasant Hill police working alongside forensic accountants from the Contra Costa County District Attorney's Office, per the same account from the Contra Costa Herald. Investigators say Ncube overcharged invoices and bills paid by the district and received unauthorized monetary kickbacks as part of the scheme. The District Attorney's Office conducted a forensic review of bank statements and related financial records before formally filing two felony charges on July 24, according to Patch.
Ncube was charged with commercial bribery and grand theft embezzlement, the district attorney's office said. As part of the year-long investigation, Pleasant Hill Police detectives executed a search warrant on October 30, 2024, at a residence on Jerilyn Drive in San Jose, seizing financial records and evidence after Ncube had relocated from Santa Rosa, according to a statement posted by the Pleasant Hill Police Department. Ncube is scheduled to be arraigned in court later this month, per the police report.
What the Charges Could Mean
Both charges Ncube faces carry serious potential consequences under California law. Commercial bribery involving kickbacks exceeding $1,000 without an employer's consent is prosecuted as a felony punishable by up to three years in state prison and a $10,000 fine, according to the Shouse Law Group. Separately, embezzlement of entrusted property or funds is classified as grand theft once losses exceed $950, exposing defendants to up to three years in state prison plus mandatory court restitution, per Kern Law, APC.
Ncube also maintained an active professional profile with the California Travel Association, where she was listed as a mentor and leader starting in November 2021 while working remotely in her role at Visit Pleasant Hill, according to the Contra Costa Herald. The lodging assessments the district collects from area hotels go toward destination marketing and community programming, including events such as the annual Art, Wine and Music Festival and the Sunset by the Lake Summer Concert Series, according to a Facebook post that references the district's funding structure.
Not the First Local Financial Fraud Case
This is not the only recent white-collar case to hit Pleasant Hill. In December 2025, a 62-year-old Pleasant Hill resident was sentenced to 27 months in federal prison after embezzling more than $1.6 million from a local youth educational nonprofit into her personal accounts between 2017 and 2023, according to the Department of Justice. A Contra Costa County Grand Jury investigation years earlier had also flagged financial oversight risks in the area, detailing a 2004 incident in which $283,000 in employee pension funds vanished due to inadequate financial reporting and passive board oversight at the local Recreation & Park District.
Several questions remain unresolved in the Ncube case. It is not yet known which specific vendors may have been involved in paying alleged kickbacks, how overcharged invoices bypassed internal approval controls for nearly three years, or whether civil recovery or insurance claims will ultimately make the tourism district whole, according to Patch's reporting. The case highlights broader questions about administrative oversight and vendor contracting within tourism improvement districts across Contra Costa County, the outlet notes.
