Trusted bookkeeper embezzles family business

Wednesday, July 9, 2008

The bookkeeper, Michael T. Plotts, 29, of Odenton admitted to Detective Tim Fridman of the Calvert County Sheriff’s Office during an investigation that he was taking money from the company’s pension fund account because he was gambling and behind on his finances, according to court documents.

Plotts also told Fridman that he wrote checks to himself and forged the signature of Richard Dent, one of the owners of Clyde W. Dent Carpeting Cleaning Inc., the court document states.

Plotts worked for the business for 10 years, and in 2004 he was promoted to bookkeeper, said current bookkeeper Lisa Lyon. A week or two after he was promoted to bookkeeper he began taking money from a business account, Lyon said.

‘‘Never in my whole life have I felt so betrayed, and the family feels the same way,” said Lyon, who has worked with the Dents for 12 years in accounts receivable and took over the job as bookkeeper in January when they decided to downsize. When Lyon began working as bookkeeper, she said she learned that Plotts had the pension fund statements sent to his residence instead of the business and contacted Plotts about the account.

On Jan. 31, Plotts went to the office in Prince Frederick with a handgun and stated that he was going to kill himself because he was removing money from the pension account, according to the court documents. When deputies responded to the scene, Plotts agreed to waive his Miranda rights and then told Fridman that he stole approximately $50,000 from the pension account, the court document stated.

The Dents arranged for a complete audit of the company’s accounts and it determined that Plotts stole $46,939.38 from the Bank of America pension account and he stole $25,358.26 by forging checks from the business account, according to the court document.

The Dents have hired an outside accountant to check on the books, Lyon said.

‘‘We don’t trust anyone now. Never in our wildest dreams did we ever expect this,” she said.

‘‘I had him [Plotts] listed in my phone as my son,” she added.

The company will be asking for restitution during sentencing, Lyon said, and she would like to see Plotts get jail time as well. ‘‘I can’t imagine that he would not get jail time. That would be devastating,” Lyon said.

Plotts is scheduled to be sentenced on Sept. 22 at 10 a.m.