People who have a fiduciary responsibility for a company often take that duty very seriously. It is imperative that anyone who does handle the assets of a business takes the time to ensure that they are doing this in a fully lawful manner. When there are issues with what is happening, there is a chance that an investigation into a possible white collar crime will take place.
One serious crime that occurs in some cases is embezzlement. This happens when assets that belong to the company are rerouted into someone’s personal possession without the permission of the company. There are many ways that this can happen.
Many people assume that only money can be embezzled, but this isn’t the case. Any company asset can be at the heart of this type of matter. For example, if a person is given a computer or vehicle to use for their work-related duties.
Embezzlement can happen in one large amount, but it is also common for employees to embezzle small amounts that add up to larger amounts over time. It doesn’t matter the size of the misappropriation as long as it happens.
Just to be clear – you can’t accidentally embezzle funds. The actions have to be intentional, which means you have to know that you are taking company assets without permission. This might be a point that you can use in your defense, but it is only going to be a valid point if you actually didn’t know that this was going on.
Oftentimes, charges for embezzlement come after a lengthy investigation. This might include a paper trail that can easily be traced back to you. Finding ways that you can combat this might be a challenge, but it shouldn’t be impossible.
