Periodic Review of Internal Policies Should Be Implemented to Reduce Theft.

By periodic reviewing, monitoring and testing policies, many attempts to commit fraud will be reduced. The reason people commit crimes are the result of motive, opportunities and means. Motive is the "reason to commit the crime" (finance, the money that was stolen), opportunity is, "a lack of internal controls and poor oversight and governance by those who have the authority to enforce" (no one to prevent the money from being stolen), and means is "the ability to commit the crime" (the ability to transfer money to a non authorized account). Call OWL Risk Management Consulting, LLC today to discuss implementing your risk assessment. 1-866-579-7475.

Friday, July 16, 2010
La Crosse, Wisconsin Church employee accused of embezzlement
A former employee at a North Side church is accused of embezzlement, according to La Crosse police reports.Ann Carson, 47, is accused of taking the funds from North Presbyterian Church, 1327 N. Salem Road, during the past decade by writing checks to herself, then logging them in account ledgers as paid to someone else, reports stated. An audit revealed a number of checks had been altered and cashed for large sums of money, but police did not release an amount.Carson, of Onalaska, was arrested Thursday and is expected to be charged with embezzlement when she appears July 23 in La Crosse County Circuit Court.

July 14, 2010.
A grand jury has indicted a former daycare director at a Lexington, Kentucky church on eight theft counts.
A grand jury has indicted a former daycare director at a Lexington church on eight theft counts.WKYT-TV reported 39-year-old Marcie King of Lexington is accused of taking more than $115,000 while working for Southern Hills United Methodist Church between 2006 and 2009.Police said the stolen money was used for weight loss programs, vacations and other personal spending. The station was unable to contact King and reported she was free on bond after turning herself in.

July 16, 2010.
Former Brookfield, Wisconsin pastor sentenced for theft of church funds.
The former pastor of St. John Vianney Catholic Church in Brookfield who was charged this year with the theft of $9,300 in church funds was sentenced Wednesday to 100 days in the county work release jail. Leonard Van Vlaenderen, 51, of Cudahy was convicted by Waukesha County Circuit Judge J. Mac Davis after Van Vlaenderen pleaded guilty Wednesday to one count of felony theft.Davis left open the option that Van Vlaenderen could serve his jail term in Milwaukee County, where the priest lives and cares for his elderly mother and aunt.If Milwaukee County authorities agree, Van Vlaenderen could end up serving much or all of his jail term at home on electronic monitoring, officials said.Davis told Van Vlaenderen to report to the Waukesha County work release jail on July 28 unless arrangements are made by then for him to serve his sentence in Milwaukee County. Van Vlaenderen was accused of obtaining repayment from the church for computer equipment that had been purchased in March 2006 and August 2006 with a parishioner's credit card but was returned for refunds, according to a criminal complaint filed in Waukesha County Circuit Court.

Van Vlaenderen used receipts from the purchases to request reimbursement from the church, the complaint says.The parishioner told police she had no idea Van Vlaenderen planned to seek reimbursement. He also was accused of using church funds to purchase a computer in March 2004 that was given to a Chicago resident, the complaint states.Van Vlaenderen has been under scrutiny since his arrest in December 2007 on a misdemeanor charge of possessing cocaine. He was convicted of that charge in 2008 and spent a year on probation. The church began reviewing its finances in December 2007, shortly after the arrest of Van Vlaenderen, who arrived at the church in 2002. An audit that the church conducted showed that the church lost nearly $128,000 over three years in thefts of cash from its weekly collections, and the audit found a correlation between the missing money and the tenure of Van Vlaenderen. Van Vlaenderen, who is on medication for clinical depression, said he was sorry for what he did."I apologize to the court, to my family, my friends, to the parishioners of St. John Vianney, all of God's people of the Archdiocese of Milwaukee for the hurt and disillusionment caused by my . . . clouded wisdom. Words cannot adequately express my remorse. I did wrong," he told Davis.