California Woman Sentenced For Embezzling More Than $400K From Charity

From the Associated Press on 1/30/14:

A Ventura County woman accused of stealing more than $400,000 from a charity where she worked has been sentenced to four years and eight months in prison.

The Ventura County Star reports (http://bit.ly/MEmVih ) 47-year-old Lorena Varela of Oxnard pleaded guilty to forgery and other charges in connection with the embezzlement from Arc of Ventura County.

Varela was a bookkeeper for the Ventura-based nonprofit, which serves residents with developmental disabilities

Prosecutors say she falsified electronic ledgers to show money had been paid to vendors. Instead, Varela used a signature stamp of an authorized Arc signatory and signed checks to herself.

Authorities say there 500 acts of theft over more than eight years.