| For Immediate Release September 23rd, 2005 |
Contact: | Mark Macaulay Media Relations Spokesperson (714) 347-8405 |
ORANGE COUNTY PERFORMING ARTS CENTER EMPLOYEE ARRAIGNED ON CHARGES SHE EMBEZZLED MORE THAN $1 MILLION FROM THE NON PROFIT ORGANIZATION
Santa Ana – Ana L. Limbaring, 53, an accounts receivable clerk at the Orange County Performing Arts Center (OCPAC), was arraigned today on 29 charges involving the embezzlement of approximately $1.6 million from OCPAC over the past five years. Currently, the defendant is charged with six counts each of grand theft by employee, grand theft by person, and falsely stating financial condition, along with 11 counts of computer access and fraud. If convicted on all counts she faces a potential sentence of 10 years in prison. The investigation is continuing and her prison exposure may change.
The defendant was responsible for accepting from security officers the daily cash revenue for the OCPAC. She was also responsible for depositing these funds directly into the non profit organization’s bank account. The defendant was the only employee that had access to the daily revenue deposits.
Limbaring was required to create reports to show that the money deposited into the OCPAC bank account matched the money given to her from OCPAC. Between January 2000 and September 2005, Limbaring is accused of skimming cash from the OCPAC by altering the financial statements that she received. She did this by printing numbers on her computer and then cutting and pasting those numbers over top of the original numbers on the financial statements. The altered statements were then processed as the deposit amounts. The defendant would take the extra cash.
“The defendant had the trust of her employer to protect their revenues and document their financial records,” said Senior Deputy District Attorney Randy Pawloski. “We will prove that she used this position of trust to deceive her employer and steal approximately $1.6 million from the company’s bank account.”
The defendant was arraigned today in Orange Count Superior Court. She is being held on $2 million bail. There is also an immigration hold on the defendant. Her next court appearance is October 13, 2005 at 9 a.m. in Department H2, Harbor Justice Center, 4601 Jamboree Road, Newport Beach, CA 92660. Senior Deputy District Attorney Randy Pawloski in the Economic Crimes Unit is prosecuting the case.