A former bookkeeper has admitted to stealing over $300,000 from a Valdosta-based physical therapy business. Heather Nicole Gray, 32, of Norman Park, Georgia, entered a guilty plea to two counts of Bank Fraud in federal court.
According to the stipulation of fact, Gray began working as a bookkeeper for Sutherland Physical Therapy, Inc. in September 2014. In December 2014, she began making automated clearinghouse payments via the internet and mobile access from two bank accounts belonging to SPT without authorization, to pay-off credits cards that she and her ex-husband used.
In August 2017, Gray’s scheme intensified when she began creating fraudulent checks without authorization, using SPT bank accounts, payable to herself or her ex-husband. She used several methods to hide her scheme, including removing pages of the monthly bank account statement that showed unauthorized checks written to her from the office and changing the ‘payee’ field in the QuickBooks system from her name to a named legitimate expense to hide the true payee, herself.
Gray made a total of 317 fraudulent payments enriching herself or her ex-husband from SPT and SYS accounts until her fraud was discovered in April 2018. In all, the fraud totaled $321,854, including $4,971.62 lost by SYS and $316,882.38 lost by SPT.
Gray’s sentencing date has not been scheduled. She faces a maximum penalty of 30 years in prison, a $250,000 fine, or both.
U.S. Attorney Charlie Peeler praised the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office and the Secret Service for uncovering the crime and helping bring a measure of justice to the victims. ‘Ms. Gray went to great lengths to avoid detection, carefully hiding her tracks so she could continue pilfering from a locally-owned business, gravely betraying the owners’ trust.’
The case was investigated by the United States Secret Service and the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Robert McCullers is prosecuting the case for the Government.
Questions can be directed to Pamela Lightsey, Public Information Officer, United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 621-2603 or Melissa Hodges, Public Affairs Director (Contractor), United States Attorney’s Office, at (478) 765-2362.
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Key Facts
- State: Georgia
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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