Former Law Firm Office Manager to Plead Guilty in a $1.3 Million Embezzlement Scheme

SACRAMENTO, CA—United States Attorney Lawrence G. Brown announced today that REGINA SCHENCK, 46, of Herald, has agreed to plead guilty to two felony counts that were filed today charging her with computer fraud and filing a false tax return related to her embezzlement of approximately $1.3 million from a Sacramento law firm.

This case is the product of a joint investigation by IRS Criminal Investigations and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to Assistant United States Attorney Matthew D. Segal, who is prosecuting the case, the information alleges that SCHENCK stole approximately $1.3 million between 2003 and 2008. She wrote law firm checks to pay her own bills, created false documents, and told lies to cause law firm partners to authorize checks that she secretly used to buy five horses and a horse trailer. She used the law firm’s computer network to inflate her salary, bonus, and benefits, and she omitted her fraud-procured income from her tax return.

U.S. Attorney Brown stated, “Schenk’s embezzlement constituted a serious breach of trust. We are grateful to her former employer for stepping up to report her wrongdoing and assisting with the investigation.”

SCHENCK is scheduled to be arraigned at 2:00 PM on Sept 3, 2009, before United States Magistrate Judge Gregory G. Hollows.

The maximum statutory penalty for a violation of computer fraud is five years in prison, a $250,000 fine, and restitution. The maximum statutory penalty for filing a false tax return is three years in prison, a fine of $100,000, and the costs of prosecution. However, the actual sentence will be dictated by the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of factors, and will be imposed at the discretion of the court.