Former Accounting Manager Pleads Guilty To Embezzling Nearly $400,000 From Huntersville-Area Employer

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Amy Hilty, 38, formerly of Stanley, N.C. and now residing in  Dalton, Ohio, appeared before U.S. Magistrate Judge David C. Keesler today and pleaded guilty to stealing nearly $400,000 from her former employer, announced Jill Westmoreland Rose, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.  Hilty pleaded to one count of wire fraud and one count of tax evasion. 

U.S. Attorney Rose is joined in making today’s announcement by Thomas J. Holloman III, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division (IRS-CI).

According to filed documents and today’s court proceedings, from 2008 to 2012, Hilty was employed as accounting manager for a company located in Huntersville, N.C.  As the company’s accounting manager, Hilty’s responsibilities included preparing the company’s financial statements, maintaining QuickBooks, preparing payroll and making bank deposits.  According to court records, Hitly used her access to the company’s accounting system to divert company funds to bank accounts she controlled.  According to court records, Hilty covered her fraud by falsely recording the stolen funds in the company’s books and records as supplies, owner withdrawals and travel expenses, among others.  In this manner, court records show that Hilty embezzled $390,156.73 from the company during the relevant time period and used the money to purchase a new home and a BMW vehicle.  Court records also show that for tax years 2008 through 2011, Hilty did not file federal income tax returns, and failed to report the diverted income and her salary from the victim company, totaling $520,976.17. 

Hilty was released on bond after her plea hearing.  The wire fraud charge carries a maximum prison term of 20 years and a $250,000 fine.  The tax fraud charge carries a maximum prison term of five years and a $250,000 fine.  As part of her plea agreement, Hilty has agreed to pay restitution, the amount of which will be determined by the Court at sentencing.   A sentencing date for the defendant has not been set yet. 

The investigation was handled by the IRS-CI.  The prosecution for the government is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Jenny G. Sugar of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte.