Boss' surprise birthday party leads to employee's arrest on theft charges
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The party's over.
A former Florida office manager was arrested Monday after a surprise birthday party she arranged for her boss led investigators to discover that she stole more than $180,000 from the business, the Lee County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.
Ruth Amen handled billing and payroll at Gulf to Bay Realty in Boca Grande for more than a decade, and decided to pay for the surprise party without permission.
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Gulf to Bay Realty officials and the Lee County Sheriff’s Office investigated Amen’s financial dealings after the surprise party incident, and found that she embezzled $181,674 from the company, the news release said.
Amen allegedly used $92,000 in company cash to pay off her personal credit card debt, in addition to allegedly issuing herself $65,000 in bonus paychecks.
Amen faces grand theft and scheme to defraud charges, both felonies.