Law Practice Management
Ex-Office Manager Charged in Florida Law Firm Theft Case
Posted Nov 19, 2008, 10:44 am CST
By Martha Neil
The former office manager of a law firm in Punta Gorda, Fla., is facing more than 200 charges in connection with at least some of the $1.67 million that an audit determined was missing from Moore and Waksler.
Angela Dees, 33, was charged with 129 counts of grand theft, 114 of wire fraud, 16 of uttering a forged instrument and two petty theft counts, reports the Charlotte Sun. Police in Punta Gorda reportedly traced wire and forged-check transactions involving law firm funds to Dees' personal accounts, dating as far back as 2002.
According to police, she allegedly spent $500,000 on "frivolous purchases such as eating at local restaurants and family entertainment," the newspaper reports.
Dees, who has no criminal history, is jailed in Port Charlotte County in lieu of $657,000 bail.
The law firm closed earlier this year, according to a Moore and Waksler website notice.