Update: California Woman Pleads Guilty To Embezzling $134K From Boys & Girls Club - Spends Stolen Money On Breast Implants

Lynette Rojas, 37, of La Habra, California, pleaded guilty to charges she embezzled $134,540 from the La Habra Boys and Girls Club where she had been employed as executive assistant and bookkeeper. According to authorities, Rojas stole more than $109,000 in cash receipts and issued herself 2 dozen unauthorized paychecks totaling nearly $25,000. Rojas reportedly used some of the stolen funds to pay for breast implants. She plead guilty to one felony count of grand theft by embezzlement, and 24 felony counts of computer access fraud. Meanwhile the Boys and Girls Club was forced to lay off staff and cut programs to cover the shortfall.

Read FraudTalk's earlier post on this story here.

Read the story here and here.

Update (4/18/11): Rojas has been sentenced to 3 years in prison.

2 Former Finance Officers of California Company Sentenced In $1.5 Million Embzzlement Scheme

Eric Wayne Helgemo, 50, of Vista, California and Maria Lorena Vega Yarrish, 40, of Buena Park, California, CFO and Controller, respectively of Pacific Polymers Inc., were sentenced yesterday for their role in an embezzlement conspiracy that bilked the company out of more than $1.5 million. Helgemo (left) was sentenced to 10 years in prison and Yarrish (right) was sentenced to 8 years in prison. They were each also ordered to pay a fine of $3 million. According to authorities, the pair issued more than 800 fraudulent paychecks to themselves over a period of about 5 years, from 2003 until 2008. Specifically, Helgemo received 593 fraudulent payments for more than $1.1 million and Yarrish received 229 fraudulent payments for more than $340,000. The embezzlement was discovered after the company was sold and Helgemo and Yarrish were let go and an audit of the company's books was conducted. Cor Claus, Pacific Polymers former owner, claimed that the company suffered a loss of as much as $7.5 million as a result of Helgemo's and Yarrish's thefts. The pair were originally charged last October with numerous counts of computer access and fraud.

Read the story here, here and here.

Read the original Orange County DA's announcement here.