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Tag: Thou shalt not steal

Accountant with Frightening Mugshot Pleads Guilty

Remember this guy?

If you recall, Hector Sanchez swiped $40k from his church to spend in “casinos and restaurants” which is arguably the lamest thing you could do with forty large of a God’s money. What about spending it on a facial to soften that nice bone structure? Yeesh.

Ex-church accountant pleads guilty to stealing $40,000; some of the money spent in casinos and restaurants, officials say [NJ.com]

PwC Report Shocker: Consumers Who Pirate Video Are ‘Enticed by Free Content’

If you can believe that.

[A]ccording to a report by PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), those lessons don’t relate well to a generation of broadband mobile users who still prefer to go searching for free content rather than pay even the smallest price.

“Many consumers who say they commit online piracy are enticed by free content” despite having access to “an astonishing variety of movies videos and television shows–on multiple platforms–faster than ever before,” the report concludes.

The report’s key findings are topped by the fact that 81 percent of surveyed consumers say they will continue pirating video despite concerns about computer viruses, the legality of their actions and inferior quality/fidelity of the content. It also reported a crossover effect in that “40 percent of those who report pirating content via traditional methods said they will probably also pirate on mobile devices within the next six months.”

PwC: Video pirates “enticed by free content” [FierceCable]
The speed of life [PwC]

Busy Season Problem Du Jour: The Kleptomaniac Co-worker

Today’s round of minor irritations from our British sister from another mister:

Further to the “snorting employee” post, any ideas on how to deal with a colleague who goes into my desk drawers to get labels and paper clips and the like, when I am actually sitting at my desk?

They are a relatively new employee and I have been showing them some aspects of how to do their job. It is really my own fault for not stopping them when they started doing it, but now it really irritates me and I’m not sure of the most painless way to deal with it other than to just tell them to stop and use their own drawers! I hate any kind of confrontation, especially since we have to sit next to each other.

Any diplomatic ideas?

I don’t know about you all but diplomacy just doesn’t fly over here in States, so an accounting firm version of the Bush Doctrine seems to be the way to go. Let’s kick a few ideas around shall we?

When your fellow cube farmer comes digging around your drawer do you:

A) Allow them to find the item they need and walk back to their desk, wait five minutes, then proceed to their workspace and violently snatch said item off their desk/out of their hand?

B) Calmly get up with your beverage of choice in hand, walk over to the offender’s cube and pour the contents of your drinking receptacle on their computer?

C) Belch in their face?

D) Do a full spin in your aeron chair and crush their hand/wrist/lower arm in the drawer?

E) Your ideas

California Church Accountant Who May Have Stolen $2 Mil Pleads Not Guilty

For the very last time: just because you are a non-profit does not mean you can operate recklessly with minimal internal controls and/or no controls at all.

Case in point, this Fresno church accounting manager who may have stolen $2 million from the church she spent 13 years working for.


51 year-old Sandra Arreola pleaded not guilty last Friday to charges that she borrowed $2.1 million from church tithes and offerings and used the money for properties, bills, vacations and clothing. Pastor Mike Robertson of Visalia First Assembly of God Church says the church noticed about two years ago that something was fishy with Arreola’s accounting. “A few regularities began to surface while testing the payroll system. Additional discrepancies in the handling of contributions came to light as a result of a further internal investigation in conjunction with a forensic audit.”

Of course, had the church been in the practice of doing regular audits in the first place (or at least open to some really reasonable internal control suggestions), it wouldn’t have to call the cops on its trusted employee and send her to jail over $2 million. Robertson says the church’s insurance policy will recover some of that money but that’s not the point. The church has since installed security cameras “to prevent fraud” – not exactly the sort of proactive stance we support around here.

Church member Becky Maze had only nice things to say about our little crook, saying Arreola was “always willing to help” and “a lovely hostess. One of the things she was well-known for was liking to have a tea for the women, and making the little cookies and desserts — the froufrou kind of things.”

Froufrou isn’t cheap, you know. There’s your motive.

Sandy is a fan of “I GAVE IT TO GOD” on Facebook, which makes us wonder if that’s where she’ll tell us the money went when she’s grilled during her trial.

Just goes to show that the religious and God-fearing might be exempt when it comes to taxes but not when it comes to the temptation to take when motive, opportunity and/or rationalization are at work. Hallelujah!

Church accountant accused of embezzling more than $2 million [The Fresno Bee]

Accountant Mugshot of the Day

An accountant for a Jersey City church was arrested today on charges he swindled the house of worship out of more than $40,000 by pocketing tax payments and spending some of the money in casinos and restaurants, officials said.

“A bond of trust has allegedly been broken with these parishioners,” said Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio of the charges against Hector L. Sanchez, 59, of Jersey City.

The accountant for the Fountain of Salvation Christian Church on Communipaw Avenue was arrested in South Orange this morning and charged with theft by failure to make required disposition, DeFazio said.

Wouldn’t think it to look at the guy.

Jersey City man accused of stealing $40K from church funds [NJ.com]