Chapter 8 - The cards
Claire’s father brought over a shoebox.
Birthday cards.
Gift cards.
Checks.
Some addressed to Aubrielle.
How did Claire get them?
Marietta said:
“Grandma likes everything shared.”
Claire believed her.
Nathan had assumed the cards came from extended relatives for Claire.
He had not read every envelope.
Now he did.
One check:
$500.
Pay to:
Aubrielle Bennett.
Never deposited.
Another:
$250 bookstore gift card.
Envelope:
For Aubrielle, who reads faster than I do. Love, Aunt Ruth.
Claire had used part of it.
Nathan was horrified.
Children cannot be blamed for using a gift card handed to them by a parent.
We documented what remained.
Returned cards where possible.
Then family-office purchases.
Some expensive gifts purchased under Aubrielle’s celebration allocation were delivered directly to Marietta’s home.
Why?
Marietta claimed:
“Central gift wrapping.”
Then several became Claire’s.
The dollar amounts were not enormous.
Total suspected redirected physical gifts over two years:
Approximately $16,000 to $23,000.
The bigger issue was the reimbursement program.
Was Marietta getting cash?
Sometimes.
She submitted receipts and received reimbursements to her personal account when she claimed she had advanced costs.
If a $1,200 purchase for Aubrielle was actually for Claire, the money still reimbursed a real expense for a child.
But it was misrepresented.
May you like
Accounting fraud can exist even when someone buys a real thing.
Intent matters.
