When a company puts someone in charge of handling large amounts of money or other significant assets, it can be devastating if that person is not trustworthy. Unfortunately, many Las Vegas businesses are harmed by unscrupulous employees who are more interested in their own gain than in the best interests of the companies they work for. This type of business fraud is known as embezzlement. The lawyers at the Aldrich Law Firm, Ltd. have a deep understanding of the ways in which your business may be harmed by an embezzler.
According to the Cornell University Law School’s Legal Information Institute, embezzlement consists of theft or larceny of a company’s property or funds by someone who is placed in a position of responsibility or trust. This type of crime is quite common and usually occurs among those in higher positions. However, anyone can be the perpetrator of embezzlement, from an office’s bookkeeper to a large corporation’s CFO.
What are some of the ways one of your employees could embezzle your company’s assets? A cashier at your store might sneak money from the registers in small amounts over a period of several months. Someone in your office may have decided to take company property, such as a laptop or smartphone, home without returning it. Your accountant might falsify records to hide large amounts of money he or she took from company accounts. The person in charge of paying your staff may write checks to fake employees and cash them.
As you can imagine, just one untrustworthy person can cause a great deal of damage to your business. These actions may be punishable in criminal court, as well as open the door for commercial litigation. For more information on protecting your company, visit our page on business and commercial litigation.
