Five people with ties to Kodiak, Alaska have been indicted
on charges of wire fraud related to the embezzlement of almost $500,000 from
Trident Seafoods.
US Attorney Karen Loeffler made the announcement Oct. 1 in
Anchorage.
According to the indictment, one of the five used her
position as a bookkeeper for Trident in Kodiak to write Trident checks to the
other four from January 2008 through August 2010. The allegations say the
bookkeeper used her check writing authority with Trident to draft some 52
checks on a Trident account and made them payable to those four, as well as to her
minor son.
The five adults shared the proceeds of the checks, the
indictment alleges.
It is further alleged that the bookkeeper concealed the
fraud by creating fraudulent accounting records so that the payments appeared
to be legitimate.
Assistant US Attorney Aunnie Steward, who presented the case
to the grand jury, indicated that the law provides for a maximum total sentence
of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine or both for each count, as well as
restitution of the embezzled funds.
The actual sentence imposed would be based on the
seriousness of the offenses and the prior criminal history, if any, of the
defendants.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Kodiak Police
Department assisted in investigating the case.