A 61-year-old Cheektowaga woman could be going to jail after admitting she stole nearly half a million dollars from her employer.
Bernadette Szymanski pleaded guilty Friday to second degree grand larceny. Szymanski stole the money while working as the controller of FPPF Chemical Co., Inc. from 1991 through 2015.
The DA’s Office says Szymanski got into a dispute with the owner over compensation for bereavement leave. When the owner went to look if Szymanski had compensated herself beyond company policy, he found she had stolen nearly $500,000 from 2002 through 2015 by payroll fraud and making unauthorized purchases on the company’s credit card.
Szymanski will be sentenced in August and could face five to 15 years behind bars.
