Kelly Garreau may have stolen as much as a half-million dollars from Country Boy Realty and its owner, Alton Makely, Cobleskill Police believe.
Officers on Wednesday charged Ms. Garreau, 47, of Richmondville with second-degree grand larceny in connection with credit card thefts stretching back seven years.
Ms. Garreau was in charge of Country Boy's business account and Mr. Makely's personal account, according to Sergeant Rich Bialkowski.
She had the business's credit card and obtained a card with her name on it for the same account, without Mr. Makely's permission, Sergeant Bialkowski said.
With that card,Ms. Garreau spent money on "anything and everything--groceries, clothing, vacations, football tickets," Sergeant Bialkowski said.
For at least one month, the charges ran to $15,000. Most months, they were in the $400 to $5,000 range, Sergeant Bialkowski said.
She paid off the credit card using funds from the business and Mr. Makely, without his knowledge.
"There were no checks and balances," Sergeant Bialkowski said. "There was a lot of trust placed in her."
Mr. Makely didn't suspect the thefts until this past March.
"We believe she intercepted the phone calls and letters" from credit card companies calling for payment, Sergeant Bialkowski said.
"Towards the end it got out of control. She could no longer handle covering her tracks. Eventually a call got through to Alton. He was quite shocked."
Police subpoenaed business and personal records, and the State Police Financial Crimes Unit helped Cobleskill police with a financial audit.
At the time of her arrest, the audit showed Ms. Garreau had taken $389,880.15 since 2006, Sergeant Bialkowski said.
However, the audit is not complete.
"More than likely there's more money missing--$400,000 to $500,000 is our best guess," Sergeant Bialkowski said.
"We were shocked. Initially, we thought maybe $100,000."
Mr. Makely won't be able to recover any of the money, Sergeant Bialkowski said.
"It's spent. . .gone. It's unfortunate," he said.
Evidence from the investigation was presented to a Schoharie County Grand Jury, and Ms. Garreau was indicted for second-degree grand larceny, a class C felony.
Ms. Garreau was arraigned in Schoharie County Court and posted $10,000 bond. She is to return to County Court November 27.
If convicted, she could serve from five to 15 years in prison, Sergeant Bialkowski said.