CrimeMay 04, 2022
2 Plead Guilty in String of California Jewelry Thefts CrimeMay 06, 2022
Former Bookkeeper Charged with Stealing $2.8M from Jewelry Company
Francisco Lopez allegedly stole the money from Julie Vos through thousands of transfers between September 2014 and April 2021.
New York—One former employee is facing charges for allegedly stealing millions from the jewelry company where he’d worked since late 2014.
According to a press release from Manhattan District Attorney Alvin Bragg Jr., Francisco Lopez, 36, has been charged in New York State Supreme Court with grand larceny in the first degree and criminal possession of stolen property in the first degree.
Lopez was the bookkeeper for New York-based jewelry company Julie Vos, which uses materials such as pearls and imported glass set in 24-karat gold-plated brass in its designs.
He allegedly stole $2.8 million dollars from the company between September 2014 and April 2021.
According to Bragg’s office, Lopez “regularly but discreetly” transferred sums of money from the Julie Vos business account to his own bank and credit card accounts, hiding the transfers as corporate expenses.
He used the stolen money to pay for leisure and luxury items, the D.A.’s office said, including travel, jewelry, clothing, and high-end cars.
The theft was uncovered in April 2021, when American Express asked the company about several transactions from its accounts to pay for charges on Lopez’s personal AmEx card.
The Manhattan D.A. Office’s Major Economic Crimes Bureau started investigating financial irregularities in the company accounts that Lopez oversaw in May 2021, eventually alleging he had stolen more than $2.8 million from the company over thousands of transfers.
Lopez pleaded not guilty to both charges on Monday, according to local reports.
His next trial date was not available by press time.
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