Kristen Morrison, 44, of Lascassas, Tennessee, is staring down federal prison time after being indicted on eight counts of wire fraud and two counts of aggravated identity theft. The charges stem from her role as a payroll specialist at Century II, a human resources company based in Brentwood, Tennessee. Federal prosecutors say she turned a routine office job into a criminal enterprise that bled $213,449.91 from a corporate client.
The indictment, handed down November 30, 2016, by a federal grand jury, alleges Morrison exploited her access to payroll systems between March 2014 and May 2016. She created direct deposit accounts and pay cards for former and completely fictitious employees of Absolute Wireless, one of Century II’s clients. These ghost workers never clocked in—but their paychecks were very real.
Morrison didn’t just fabricate employee records—she rerouted the funds straight into her pocket. The indictment claims she personally used the pay cards generated under false identities to siphon off wages, turning payroll fraud into a sustained personal piggybank. Every transaction was routed electronically, leaving a digital trail that eventually led straight back to her.
If convicted, Morrison faces up to 20 years in prison on the wire fraud charges, plus a mandatory two-year consecutive sentence for each count of aggravated identity theft. She’s also on the hook for a fine of up to $250,000 and the full forfeiture of $213,449.91—the exact amount prosecutors say she stole.
This case was investigated by the FBI and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Henry Leventis. Authorities say the scheme unraveled as discrepancies in payroll records triggered internal audits, which in turn led to federal scrutiny. No co-conspirators have been named in the indictment.
An indictment is not evidence of guilt. Kristen Morrison is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law. But the charges paint a clear picture: a trusted payroll specialist accused of treating a corporate payroll like her own personal ATM.
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Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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