COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho — A Coeur d'Alene cabinet company was forced to layoff four employees due to an employee embezzling $1.2 million over nearly 10 years.
One of Tapley Cabinet Works former owners told KREM that he delayed his retirement due to 63-year-old Sue Ann Larson's actions.
According to a news release, U.S. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill ordered Larson to pay over $1.4 million in restitution for embezzling over $1.2 million from a local custom cabinet shop where she served as a bookkeeper from 2009 to Feb. 2018. She also was found guilty of falsifying tax returns, which caused her to not pay $175,000 in taxes.
Larson often used company money to pay off her person credit cards, and prosecutors called her actions "calculated." In 2010 alone, she stole nearly $90,000 in 59 separate transactions.
Although the company had to lay off four employees, they were all eventually rehired. One eventually decided to leave for unrelated reasons.
Winmill ordered Larson to sell her home in Coeur d'Alene, recreational property near St. Maries, and two classic vehicles to meet her $1.4 million restitution obligation. The vehicles are a Ford Mustang and a Ford Bronco.
Larson pleaded guilty to both crimes on Feb. 26, 2019. She was also sentenced to 43 months in federal prison.
The case was investigated by the Coeur d'Alene Police Department and the criminal investigation division of the IRS.
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