On November 4, the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Georgia announced that a bookkeeper from Bogart, Georgia – just outside of Athens – had pled guilty to wire fraud in connection with allegations that she had stolen hundreds of thousands of dollars from her clients. An FBI investigation uncovered that Suzanne Brooks had stolen over $650,000 from her real estate clients to pay for her bills and for various luxury items. The clients did not detect the fraud allegedly perpetrated by Brooks and instead believed that their businesses were less profitable than they actually were.
Between 2013 and 2018, Brooks served as bookkeeper for two real estate companies. This position provided her with access to online banking and paper checks for the clients. Using those instruments, Brooks allegedly made payments to her personal accounts. She also allegedly used the funds to pay for jewelry, travel, and inventory for her business selling clothing, among other expenditures, and wrote checks made out to herself. Brooks then allegedly falsified bank statements and profit and loss statements in order to hide the theft. Following her guilty plea, Brooks faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.
The attorneys at Chilivis Grubman represent clients of all types and sizes in connection with white-collar criminal investigations. If you need assistance with such a matter, please contact us today.