Gambling addict who stole from employer sentenced for imprisonment

A Minnesota court slapped two-year imprisonment for a 59-year-old woman, named Theresa E. Linsmeier, of Fairfax, for stealing more than $500,000 her employer who was also her close friend.

After her two-year prison term, she will have to spend three years on supervised release and must make full restitution for the money she stole.

Linsmeier was working as the bookkeeper for Farm Mercantile hardware store from 1998 to 2016 run by her close friend Kelly Albrecht. She had the authority to sign and issue checks for the store.

“Linsmeier abused the trust of her friend and employer,” read a presentencing court filing by prosecutors. “She stole not only from the business account but also from Kelly Albrecht’s personal bank account. She used the money to pay her credit card bills and to gamble online.”

Linsmeier transferred money from the business and Albrecht’s personal account and used more than $540,000 to gamble online from 2011 to 2016. She allegedly created false entries in the store ledger to make it look like the money was used for legitimate business purposes.

Because she failed to report the money she embezzled on her tax returns, she avoided nearly $115,000 in federal income taxes from 2012 through 2016.

Source: StarTribune