Embezzlement of $50,000 alleged in Charlotte

According to Charlotte officials, a contract employee was said to have embezzled more than $50,000 from the city’s transit system. The alleged embezzlement was supposed to have taken place over a period of two years.

The Charlotte Area Transit System had contracted out the handling of money and paperwork concerning fines collected from riders without tickets. The embezzlement purportedly took place within the firm that handled these fines. This same firm agreed to refund the money without any admission of wrongdoing.

There is no explanation as to how the embezzlement was supposed to have taken place within the police report. While police do state that there was a suspect responsible for accepting payments and then using the money for personal purposes, no arrests had yet taken place when this story was reported.

Individuals faced with felony charges could end up paying large fines or spending a significant amount of time in jail. However, there does need to be probable cause of a crime for an arrest to take place. Also, the burden of proving that a crime has been committed lies with prosecuting attorneys and arresting officers. Until this burden is met, the presumption of innocence needs to remain.

Please speak to an experienced criminal defense attorney before making any statements to prosecutors or police officers. With an attorney, one’s chances of being convicted are reduced. Attorneys can analyze and investigate one’s circumstances, discuss what legal options are available, and put together a strategy so to minimize or eliminate the penalties that one faces.