Former CFO Of Emporia Company Pleads Guilty To Embezzling $265,927

TOPEKA, KAN. - The former chief financial officer for a manufacturing firm in Emporia has pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $265,927 from the company, U.S. Attorney Barry Grissom said today.

Sandra Moore, 58, Emporia, Kan., pleaded guilty Monday to one count of embezzlement. In her plea, she admitted the crime occurred beginning in 2008 while she was CFO of Sauder Custom Fabrication, Inc., in Emporia, Kan.

She devised a variety of schemes to divert money from her employer’s accounts to her own including:

• Making unauthorized transfers from the company’s disbursement account to her personal account at ESB Financial in Emporia.
• Issuing unauthorized checks and depositing them into her personal account.
• Issuing unauthorized checks to repay loans she obtained from her 401K account.

Using those methods, she embezzled a total of $265,927 from the company.

Sentencing is set for March 3. She faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.  Grissom commended the FBI and Assistant U.S. Attorney Richard Hathaway for their work on the case.