Released August 1, 2008
A Long Beach woman was sentenced to four years in state prison Monday on one felony count of grand theft and one felony count of filing a false state income tax return, the Franchise Tax Board (FTB) said.
Patricia A. Cruz, 46, pleaded guilty to the charges on July 3. According to court documents, Cruz was employed as a secretary for a local commercial construction firm. She abused her position of trust by writing fraudulent checks from the corporate bank account for her personal gain. Between 2003 – 2007, Cruz embezzled more than $500,000 from her former employer before the company owner discovered the theft. When confronted, Cruz admitted to the theft and then presented a spreadsheet detailing the amount and extent of her theft. Cruz used the stolen funds to purchase personal items.
In addition, Cruz failed to claim the embezzled funds on her 2004 - 2006 state income tax return. All income is taxable including income from illegal sources.
Cruz was also ordered to pay restitution of $572,672 to her former employer and $89,520 to FTB representing the unpaid tax, penalties, and interest.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Alex Ricciardulli handed down the sentence in Department 32 of the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center. Los Angeles County Deputy District Attorney Sun Chung prosecuted the case. This was a joint investigation between the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Office, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office, and FTB.