A Riverside woman who was the controller of a metal forging company faces the possibility of a federal prison term Thursday when she is sentenced for the embezzlement of $1.5 million from her ex-employer.
Jacquelin Dyer, 68, who was also co-general manager at Fontana-based Pacific Forge Inc., pleaded guilty in September to one federal count of mail fraud. She faces up to 20 years behind bars when she is sentenced in Los Angeles by U.S. District Judge George H. Wu, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
As the controller, Dyer was responsible for all aspects of accounting at Pacific Forge, and she was authorized to sign corporate checks for amounts up to $5,000. Over the course of about 10 years, Dyer used Pacific Forge corporate checks to pay her personal bills, according to court documents.
Dyer printed and signed corporate checks under $5,000 made to appear they would be used to pay Pacific Forge vendors, but in reality were mailed to pay her personal expenses.
She pleaded guilty to signing a $4,752 check that she mailed to American Express to pay her personal credit card bill. False entries in the Pacific Forge books made the check appear to be a payment to a vendor.
In total, Dyer embezzled about $1.5 million of Pacific Forge funds to pay for her mortgage, personal tax payments and vehicle repair expenses, according to her plea agreement. She agreed to forfeit $160,000 she used to pay for her home, documents filed in Los Angeles federal court show.
—City News Service