3 JAILED IN EMBEZZLEMENT.Byline: Nicholas Grudin Staff Writer SANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, - A 32-month investigation into suspected embezzlement embezzlement, wrongful use, for one's own selfish ends, of the property of another when that property has been legally entrusted to one. Such an act was not larceny at common law because larceny was committed only when property was acquired by a "felonious taking," i. at a Valencia airplane parts business has led to the arrest of three San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. residents, two of whom were trusted employees at the company that lost $380,000. Felony embezzlement charges have been filed against Anthony Fisher, 38, of Pacoima, Teresa Rucker, 37, of Granada Hills, and William Sahatjian, 53, of Thousand Oaks Thousand Oaks, residential city (1990 pop. 104,352), Ventura co., S Calif., in a farm area; inc. 1964. Avocados, citrus, vegetables, strawberries, and nursery products are grown. , for writing checks to themselves out of the company's funds, an investigator said. Rucker and Fisher were arrested Sunday, and Sahatjian was taken into custody Nov. 12. ``What's interesting about the case is that two of the suspects worked for the company. Rucker was a bookkeeper, and she processed the checks, and Fisher worked in their shipping and receiving department,'' said Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. County sheriff's fraud Detective Simeon Plyler, who has been investigating the case for nearly three years. ``These people were well-liked and trusted by their employer,'' Plyler said. ``The checks and balances system didn't work because they just trusted the individual that was doing it. ... Fisher and Rucker were like family to the business.'' Over the course of more than two years, from January 1999 to March 2001, the three suspects wrote 188 checks out of the company's accounts to fabricated businesses, Plyler said. The suspects then cashed the checks into their own bank accounts, according to according to prep. 1. As stated or indicated by; on the authority of: according to historians. 2. In keeping with: according to instructions. 3. Plyler. Officials from Sunvair, who were not available to comment Monday afternoon, reported the alleged embezzlement in March 2001 after discovering canceled checks that had been written to and cashed by unknown companies. In Plyler's investigation, about $160,000 of the stolen money has been traced and found in one of the suspects' checking accounts, and could be returned to the company pending court hearings, the detective said. Plyler said much of the money may have been spent on gambling and other ``toys.'' The investigation took so long because of the lengthy process of applying for bank account search warrants, Plyler said. Arraignment A criminal proceeding at which the defendant is officially called before a court of competent jurisdiction, informed of the offense charged in the complaint, information, indictment, or other charging document, and asked to enter a plea of guilty, not guilty, or as otherwise permitted for the three suspects was scheduled for 2 p.m. Monday, but was continued until Friday. All three remain in custody on $300,000 bail each. Nicholas Grudin, (661) 257-5255 nicholas.grudin(at)dailynews.com |
|
||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion