A Florida woman who admitted to embezzling $27,211 from the surgeons group she managed has been sentenced to 15 years probation and ordered to pay back the money she stole, according to court records.
Marty Glass, the office administrator for the New Port Richey, Fla.-based West Coast Surgical Associates, deposited 7 extra bonus checks and 5 additional payroll checks into her personal checking account between September 2008 and December 2009, according to Detective Jennifer Morton of the West Pasco Sheriff's economic crimes unit.
Ms. Morton says the physicians group's accountant noticed the payroll discrepancies and notified one of the surgeons, who confronted Ms. Glass on Jan. 26. She admitted to the wrongdoing and was immediately fired.
Ms. Glass was arrested in April after a 2-month investigation pinpointed the bogus checks and a review of her checking account's deposits confirmed the extra pay she had collected, according to Ms. Morton.
Why would a successful office manager with no prior criminal record steal from the surgeons who trusted her? Ms. Morton says Ms. Glass had welcomed extra family members into her home and claimed she "didn't have the means to support them."
The acting manager for West Coast Surgical Associates says the physicians want to put the episode behind them and that Ms. Glass's admitted guilt and the court's verdict speak for themselves.
Daniel Cook
