A New York City employee and director at a local non-profit pleaded guilty of federal embezzlement charges in Manhattan Federal Court.According to the North Country Gazette, the charges stem via a variety of methods to ultimately steal over $50,000, including mis-allocation of grant funds, giving herself unauthorized pay raises, and other financial fraud schemes.

Embezzlement charges were issued in Federal court, instead of New York State, largely due to the fact that much of the funding to this organization came through federally issued grants. Specific charges included embezzling federal funds, and conspiracy to commit wire fraud. A federal judge will make a final sentencing decision, to be issued in January.

As we’ve discussed before, non-profit organizations are notoriously easy to embezzle from, especially if you are in the organization leadership, as this woman was the executive director of the organization. Non-profits are typically short staffed, so there is little redundant responsibility or over-site.

And at a non-profit, there is often an assumption of common purpose among the staff, and that assumption can be exploited by someone with less scrupulous or honorable motives.

Related posts:

1. Federal Embezzlement Charges in California Union Case A Barstow, CA man faces federal charges of embezzlement of...
2. More Bookkeepers Going to Jail for Embezzlement In the news this week were bookkeepers in New York...
3. Washington Non-Profit Treasurer Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement As is typical with embezzlement charges, when a person admits...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The former head of the Memphis Police Association avoided jail time for a felony embezzlement charge in exchange for restitution.

According to the Memphis Commercial Appeal, in exchange for returning the $25,000 in union funds stolen by diverting funds to his personal accounts, he was placed on diversion (probation) for three years.

Even with serious felony embezzlement charges, it is possible to avoid jail time under the right circumstances.

Most victims want their money back most of all, and that he was able to pay it back after pleading guilty is no doubt what is keeping him out of prison.

Restitution is absolutely a key defense strategy for a good outcome to embezzlement charges, and it is no doubt one that an experienced criminal defense lawyer fighting embezzlement charges will want to thoroughly explore.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

As we’ve noted before, non-profits and charities can be the easiest places to embezzle money from They are often understaffed, without strict financial oversight, and run on an assumption of trust and goodwill.

That appears to even been the case when the government is involved in the management, such as with the Mecklenburg, NC  iving Fund, overseen by the county’s department of social services.According to this editorial in the Observer, a woman stole about $160,000 from the organization while working as a bookkeeper. She did so by getting cash advances, and turning in expense receipts, most of the time.

Basic rules of financial oversight, such as requiring 2 signatures, were not observed. The DSS had not had an internal audit in over 10 years.

Unfortunately, even with a government operation, this kind of lax enforcement is not uncommon or outrageous. It is a common thread in news reports of embezzlement cases that the person had been stealing money for years. You never hear of someone writing one fraudulent check to themselves out of a company account, and getting caught instantly.

The problem with embezzlement cases is that people do get away with it, at least for a while. Not getting caught makes it tempting to try again, and again.

The best you can do is hope to get most of the money back as a forfeiture, which they are attempting to do in this case.

Related posts:

1. Embezzlement Case of Famous Skateboarder A professional skateboarder, and star of an MTV reality show...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

A Pennsylvania woman faces felony embezzlement charges after allegedly taking over 75,000 worth of jewelry and merchandise from her employer, the television shopping network QVC. She has also admitted to embezzling from a previous employer, a management company, and was out on bail for that previous charge.

According to KYW newsradio, the woman has plead guilty to the new offense. The only question is the sentencing, which is to be determined. Under Pennsylvania law, embezzlement charges are punished based on the amount or value of items taken. She is likely facing a state prison sentence of at least several years for a theft of that magnitude.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

In industries where the financial rules and regulations are so intricate and complex that only a few people understand them, embezzlement opportunities can be more tempting, and harder to uncover.

That appears to be the case with a woman in upstate New York facing embezzlement charges from the dairy co-op where she was hired as a bookkeeper. She is accused of embezzling tens at least tens thousands of dollars from accounts to which she wasn’t authorized to transfer out any payments.

Most people wouldn’t necessarily think that the financial issues in the dairy farming industry are quite so arcane as to require a specialist, but that is apparently the case according to this news report from the Utica Observer-Dispatch. A dairy industry cooperative relies on a complex formula of payments to it’s members based on milk pricing and different farmers varying production levels.

This woman took advantage of her expertise to insert herself in the transactions, and allegedly steal the money.

As we continue to learn, the less oversight a company or organization has, the more likely they are to be victims of embezzlement.

No related posts.

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

A Florida man plead guilty to felony charges of embezzlement in Florida, but avoided serious consequences typically expected with felony offenses. In exchange for restitution, he and his attorneys worked out a deal for probation without jail time, and even a withhold of adjudication, meaning the felony conviction won’t appear on his record if he completes his probation.

According to the Miami Herald, The Miami man was accused of Grand Theft in the embezzlement of $10,00o, in his role as an office manager at a charitable volunteer organization.

As we’ve noted before, non-profit organizations can be more susceptible to financial fraud, due to less overhead and oversight.

Restitution, or returning the money taken, can be a very important factor in getting a reduced sentence or plea deal. The victim in the case often wants the money back, more than further punishment, and prosecutors are often sympathetic to those desires. Restitution is a key defense strategy for working out a fair deal for the accused.

Under Florida law, a 3rd degree grand theft conviction can result in penalties of up to 5 years in prison.

Related posts:

1. Connecticut Woman Avoids Jail Time in Embezzlment Sentencing In a Connecticut embezzlement case, a woman is able to...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Non-profit organizations are typically understaffed, without a lot of management oversight, and operate in an environment of trust. These conditions can make them easy victims of embezzlement and financial fraud.This article focuses on non-profits in Oregon, but the ideas certainly apply to groups nationwide. With a small organization, and often only a single person in charge of managing finances, the ease of someone “borrowing” funds from the organization accounts can make it very tempting to people who may be in personal financial trouble.

It also spells out the typical embezzlement circumstances in most of these situations. It is not commonly just a a deliberate scheme to enrich one’s self. Many people who are ultimately convicted of embezzlement say they only meant to borrow the money temporarily, and meant no harm. They always planned to pay the money back quickly. But, very often it doesn’t play out that way.

New and continuing financial problems crop up, and paying back the money doesn’t quite work out.

That, and the fact that once someone has taken money from an organization and realize that no one even noticed, the temptation to continue doing so can be huge. And gradually the problem spirals out of control.

A few good basic tips of financial oversight can make a big difference in your organization.

In particular, don’t have the same person issuing checks be the one who reconciles the account and does the bookkeeping. This will help insure that any irregularities will be flagged quickly. It will also make it less tempting for someone to borrow some cash from the organization, knowing that another person is reviewing the transactions.

—

Related posts:

1. Washington Non-Profit Treasurer Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement As is typical with embezzlement charges, when a person admits...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Inevitably, the Koss embezzlement case is raising significant questions about the corporate governance and financial auditing that did or didn’t happen here.

The Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel continues to do great reporting on the Koss case. There are serious issues here that should concern any business owner or investor. How effective are financial auditors at identifying corporate fraud and embezzlement?

The answer here is quite likely: Not Very.

Related posts:

1. More on the Koss Embezzlement Case The Journal-Sentinel provides lots of fascinating insight into how the...
2. Updates on Koss Embezzlement Case The biggest corporate embezzlement case of 2009 is being investigated...
3. Koss Shares Plunge on Still Unfolding Embezzlement Losses A small company with multi-million dollar losses as a result...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

The Journal-Sentinel provides lots of fascinating insight into how the Koss embezzlement case happened. The short answer is that it’s possible that it is lot easier to steal from a small, family owned cut ompany with a fairly lax financial oversight process. But it’s just an amazing story on so many levels, abohow one executive could end up swindling a huge percentages of the profits from a publicly traded company.

It’s also interesting to wonder what the company would have looked like if the true profitability of the company had been apparent to all for these past years.

Really great stuff by Cary Spivak at the Journal-Sentinel.

Related posts:

1. Updates on Koss Embezzlement Case The biggest corporate embezzlement case of 2009 is being investigated...
2. Koss Shares Plunge on Still Unfolding Embezzlement Losses A small company with multi-million dollar losses as a result...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.

Embezzlement charges, like any criminal offense, can be fought and beaten in court. There is a reason why being charged and arrested for a crime like embezzlement is not the same thing as being guilty!

If it were, there would be no need for courts and trials. Police would arrest people and send them immediately to prison to serve out their sentence. But that’s not how we do things under our system of justice. You are innocent until proven guilty. And one woman is fighting to prove that, after rejecting a plea offer in an embezzlement case.

In this case, the woman is accused of Embezzlement from a non-profit organization, the American Red Cross, where she provided training in CPR and first aid.

In rejecting the offer, and proceeding with additional court dates and a potential trial on charges of embezzlement and grand theft, the woman has completely maintained her innocence.

She is accused of having work funds sent to her home instead of the office. She maintains that the money use was completely appropriate, and the money was sent to her home instead of the work location because of problems with the bookkeeping system.

Many people automatically assume that an embezzlement case is hard to defend and fight in court, since there is likely a significant paper trail of checks received or money transferred. But there can often be perfectly innocent and legitimate explanations for money transfers that, on the surface, may look suspicious.

To win an embezzlement case, you need an experienced criminal defense attorney who believes in you, and is willing to dig into an often complex paper trail of financial documents, and find the truth of the case.

Related posts:

1. Rhode Island Woman Accused of Embezzlment from Organization Helping Disabled Kids Embezzlement from charitable organizations is one of the crimes that...

Related posts brought to you by Yet Another Related Posts Plugin.