A bookkeeper at a local company has been charged with embezzling more than $93,000 from her employer.
Kathleen Joy Fifer, 49, of Brooksville, recently took a medical leave from her job at Bach Logistics, a trucking and asphalt paving company, based in Leesburg. The company works throughout Central Florida and has 20 employees.
During the medical leave, it was discovered that Fifer set her company computer to automatically log into her credit card and social media accounts. Family members had been inquiring through Facebook asking which fuel cards they should be using. Fifer and family members, some as far away as Texas, had been using 15 company WEX fuel cards, according to an arrest report from the Leesburg Police Department. Fifer reportedly changed the settings on the credit cards so they could be used for all types of purchases, including alcohol and cigarettes. An investigation uncovered more than $69,000 in purchases on the fuel cards. The report noted that all of the fuel purchases were for unleaded gasoline, when all of the company vehicles use diesel.
Fifer also diverted more than $4,000 in company funds to pay her Nissan auto loan and more than $16,000 to pay her credit card bills.
The Ohio native, who was said to be a mother figure to all working at Bach Logistics, was arrested on multiple fraud charges Thursday morning at work. She was booked at the Lake County Jail and released after posting $32,000 bond.
The report noted that an audit of company finances is still being conducted and additional charges may still be uncovered.
