A former employee of Cullom Eye and Laser Center in Williamsburg was indicted by a federal grand jury Wednesday on fraud charges for allegedly embezzling over $500,000 from her employer.
Sherea Darnell, 33, of Southfield, Michigan, has been charged with wire fraud, bank fraud, use of an unauthorized access device, and filing false tax returns, according to a Department of Justice news release.
Darnell was employed as the administrator for the medical practice from March 2012 through September 2016, according to court documents.
A federal indictment alleges Darnell used a company credit card to pay for her son’s private school tuition, maid services for her home, entertainment, dining, high end clothing, jewelry, and airline travel for Darnell and members of her family to resorts around the country and abroad. Court documents state over $90,000 in cash advances were also made on the cards.
According to allegations in the indictment, Darnell was provided with two business credit cards while working for the practice. The cards were to be used for business purposes, such as supplies and office equipment.
After Darnell resigned in September 2016 and moved to Michigan, the eye center began reviewing its bank accounts and saw that “large payments had been made to office’s credit cards,” the release stated.
Darnell faces a maximum penalty of 30 years on each count of bank fraud, 20 years on each count of wire fraud, and 3 years on each count of filing false tax returns, if convicted, the release stated.
