YMCA Employee {in Cheyenne} Accused of Embezzling {$20,000}

Cheyenne Wyoming Tribune-Eagle ^ | 10-16-04 | Rule, Juliette

[Theodore R.]

YMCA employee accused of embezzling Susan J. Miller charged with stealing $20,000

By Juliette Rule rep9@wyomingnews.com Published in the Wyoming Tribune-Eagle

CHEYENNE - Padding a bank account was as simple as getting on the Internet or swiping a debit card, investigators say.

Those were the methods police say Susan J. Miller used to funnel $20,000 from YMCA coffers into her personal account at Cheyenne First Bank between June 2003 and March of this year.

She was charged last week by Laramie County District Attorney Jon Forwood with seven counts of felony embezzlement, court records show.

The Cheyenne woman was the nonprofit's office manager until March, YMCA manager Ed Carleo said. He said he called police in March when he figured out money was missing from the organization's U.S. Bank account.

Money was siphoned out of the account using Internet banking, a service most financial institutions offer, investigators say. From a computer station, users can balance accounts and transfer money between accounts.

Investigators say Miller logged onto the YMCA account and authorized transfers of as little as $647 in June 2003 and as much as $6,900 in March 2004. That happened at least 11 times from her computer work station at the YMCA, they add.

But on four other occasions, Miller allegedly faked merchandise returns by swiping her debit card through the YMCA's credit card processor, investigators say.

The nonprofit's refund policy dictates paper checks be issued, court records show.

Miller, who turns 46 today, handled bookkeeping and accessed the YMCA's finances as part of that job, records add.

Before Carleo met with police, he says Miller told him "she was being set up" by someone who had taken her debit card and wanted to make her look bad by moving that money to her personal account, records show.

Investigators say each one of the credits was found in her monthly bank statements, but there was no mention to Carleo about the "suddenly appearing" money until March, when Miller learned of his concerns, records say.

The YMCA bank statements were "wiped clean" to hide the debits, and Miller's debit card never was reported lost or stolen to First Cheyenne bank, investigators say. It still was being used even as investigators audited her personal account, they add.

Miller faces up to 10 years in prison on each of those charges. She is free on a $5,000 signature bond that requires her to pay that amount if she gambles, goes into a casino or violates other laws.

Miller is represented by Mike Reese. He declined comment on the charges.

Miller couldn't be reached by telephone Friday.

Carleo said YMCA staffers were disappointed to learn of the problem and he has introduced even stronger measures to the accounting procedure.

Annual audits didn't reveal the problem, Carleo said, but the accounting firm wasn't asked to consider fraud, only ensure that accounts were properly credited.

The loss likely will be covered by insurance, and it won't affect the YMCA's daily operations, he said.