Secretary wrote at least 44 checks to herself, then vacationed in Alaska, feds say
A secretary who was employed by a family-owned agricultural business in Missouri embezzled $1.2 million by writing at least 44 checks to herself, according to federal authorities.
Her theft made it appear as though the company’s profits were falling, leading the family to sell the business in Ralls County “for a reduced amount,” according to a Jan. 24 news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri.
“Had the company books reflected their true profits, the family would have either kept the business to support the next generation or been able to sell it for more money,” authorities said.
Stephanie D. Carper, who now lives in Alabama, pleaded guilty to a felony bank fraud charge in October, admitting that she stole the money from September 2013 to September 2019, McClatchy News reported.
Now the 51-year-old woman has been sentenced to 2.5 years in prison, officials said.
“We were disappointed by the sentence although it was not a surprise in part because of the allegation that the embezzlement was at least part of the reason that the business was failing,” defense attorney Richard H. Sindel said in a statement to McClatchy News. “Ms. Carper has the support of her family, her friends, and her church group—that always helps.”
In Carper’s signed plea agreement, she admitted that she would take pre-signed blank checks and write her name in the recipient line. She’d also write how much she wanted to steal on the check.
The checks were actually signed for her to pay authorized vendors, authorities said.
Carper would then deposit those checks into her personal account, officials said, stealing more than $1.2 million.
She also admitted to writing fake explanations on the deposit slips and false transaction descriptions in the business check registry, according to court records. In many cases, she wrongly said the checks were used to pay the company’s primary vendor.
At least some of the money was used to buy a 2015 Nissan Murano SUV, a 2016 Toyota Tundra crew pickup and a Caterpillar 247 skid loader, records show.
She also used the stolen money to pay for Alaska vacations and other trips, authorities said.
“Stephanie Carper shamelessly abused the good nature, sympathy, and trust of the owners of a family business in rural Missouri,” FBI Special Agent in Charge Jay Greenberg said in the release. “After being hired as a secretary, she paid the owners back by robbing them blind.”
The vehicles and $31,000 she had in a bank account has been seized to help repay what was stolen, authorities said.
“The damage done is irreparable,” a letter written on behalf of the business said, according to the release. “All that (the founders) worked for was lost with the damage that Ms. Carper did.”
This story was originally published January 25, 2023 at 9:13 AM with the headline "Secretary wrote at least 44 checks to herself, then vacationed in Alaska, feds say."