In the cement company where my brother works, there is a department that is paid in two ways: $1000 by the truckload or $50 for a small quantity. Each load is identified by a number. The $1000 load is #250 and the $50 load is #100. The loads are checked by an employee and, if all is ok, the drivers pay the employee….sometimes in CASH. It is the employee's responsibility.........
....... to complete the paperwork, collect the cash and submit it to the company. “Sally”, the employee charged with this responsibility, had a bright idea. She would collect the $1000 and fill out the paperwork for the $50 load. She would then submit the paperwork along with the $50 and keep the $950 for herself - what a thief! Clever? NOT!
The company realized there was more product being sold than money collected. They weren’t sure where to begin as the company is very large with many moving parts. My brother had a brainstorm to create a “mock situation” in which they hired truckers to go through the procedure of purchasing $1000 loads. They weren’t sure where this would lead, if anywhere.
The embezzler, on cue, did her thing and collected $1000 then filled out paperwork for $50. CAUGHT RED HANDED STEALING THE $950!
My brother is so smart!!
Did she pay restitution? Probably a fraction of what she embezzled. We’ll look next at what needs to be done to ensure the embezzler is at least prevented from repeating the offense with the next employer. You probably won’t like it but it is definitely worth knowing. Once you know it, you WILL NOT want to be embezzled and will put controls in place to prevent it in the first place!
DON’T BE THE NEXT VICTIM!
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