Submitted by Suanne Z. Thamm
Reporter – News Analyst
August 23, 2017 – 12:55 p.m.
Elizabeth Renee Thomas was arrested on August 15th at 4:58pm for theft over $10,000, a felony, which has a $25,002 bond. She posted her bond shortly after her arrest and was released.
Kerry Killen, owner of Coastal Building Systems in Nassau County on Amelia Island, called Nassau County detectives in May upon his accountant’s discovery that his 29 year-old secretary appeared to have stolen $354,000 between January and May 2017.
Thomas had allegedly written several unauthorized checks to herself and to petty cash.
According to a report filed by News4Jax, “Investigators said they concluded the thefts started in early 2015 when Thomas’s mother-in-law had to leave the office for eight months. Her mother-in-law worked with Killen for 17 years.”
https://www.news4jax.com/news/florida/nassau-county/woman-accused-of-stealing-354k-from-her-employer
If audits had been done on an annual basis, this fraud should have been discovered back in 2015 when it first started.
While all suspects are considered innocent until convicted, I would be a bit concerned about her being a flight risk given the total amount stolen.