There are a variety of white-collar crimes ranging from money laundering to embezzlement. The term “white-collar crime” refers to crimes of deceit motivated by financial gain. These crimes are also generally committed by business or government professionals. With so many recent high-profile white-collar crimes in the news, prosecutors are putting an ever-increasing amount of time and energy into going after these financially motivated illicit activities.
According to a recent news report, a California woman from Temecula is facing multiple criminal counts for allegedly embezzling nearly $400,000 from a public agency. The 40-year-old reportedly managed accounts for the Family Hope Foster Family Agency. According to authorities, the money was earmarked for the use of foster children. Instead, authorities claim the suspect used the funds for vacations and house payments.
The missing money, which was allegedly taken during the years 2004 and 2009, was discovered following an audit conducted by the Department of Social Services. The suspect reportedly used the money to travel to gambling casinos in places like Las Vegas and to purchase vacation time-share properties. Authorities say that the woman is currently being held on $400,000 bail and is facing multiple charges including embezzlement and money laundering.
Embezzlement is the improper taking of money from a person to a special duty is owed. As in the case above the most common examples of embezzlement involve employees who who have access to the money because of said special duty but take money from their employer without authorization but. Money laundering, on the other hand, is the act of illegally filtering stolen money through a series of deceptive transactions to make the money appear legal.
Source: NewsOK, “Foster care official faces embezzlement charges,” Aug. 30, 2013