Related Federal Cases
Ben Thomas III Charged with Defrauding Williams Sonoma
A 48-year-old Georgia man has been indicted on charges of defrauding his former employer, San Francisco-based Williams Sonoma, Inc. (WSI), out of more than $10 million.
According to a federal grand jury in San Francisco, Ben Thomas III allegedly registered a fictitious temporary staffing company, Empire Logistics Services (Empire), that billed WSI for work that Empire never performed.
Thomas, who worked as the general manager of the WSI hub and distribution facility in Braselton, Georgia, from 2016 to 2023, had the authority to hire temporary staffing vendors and approve payments up to $50,000 to vendors.
However, the indictment alleges that Thomas concealed from WSI the fact that he owned and controlled Empire, and that he was billing WSI via Empire for work never performed.
Between 2017 and 2023, Thomas fraudulently submitted hundreds of Empire invoices to WSI, each for less than Thomas’s $50,000 approval limit, and caused WSI to make approximately 335 payments over six years totaling more than $10 million in a bank account Thomas controlled.
The indictment charges Thomas with eight counts of wire fraud and four counts of money laundering. If convicted, Thomas faces up to 20 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution, for each violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1343 (wire fraud) and up to 10 years in prison and a fine of $250,000, plus restitution, for each violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1957 (money laundering).
Ben Thomas III is scheduled to make his initial appearance in federal court in San Francisco on October 1, 2024, before the Honorable Peter H. Kang, U.S. Magistrate Judge.
Key Facts
- State: California
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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