Village Market Food Centers’ Comptroller Charged with Stealing from Company
| U.S. Attorney’s Office February 04, 2013 |
GRAND RAPIDS, MI—Christopher E. Pratt was charged Friday, February 1, 2013, with defrauding his former employer, Village Market Food Centers. In a one-count felony information, the United States Attorney’s Office alleged that from 2004 until 2012 Pratt, who was Village Market’s Comptroller, stole more than $6,000,000 by diverting funds from Village Market Food Centers accounts to pay Pratt’s personal credit card bills. The information alleges that Pratt used the money primarily to finance and maintain a fleet of muscle-cars. Pratt will appear in court sometime in the next few weeks for his arraignment.
If convicted, Pratt faces up to 20 years in prison, supervised release of up to three years, and other fines and penalties. This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The charges in an information are merely accusations, and a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty in a court of law.