Former San Antonio bookkeeper pleads guilty to stealing almost $1.7M

SAN ANTONIO, Texas - A former bookkeeper and financial manager for a San Antonio private law firm has admitted to stealing almost $1.7 million from the firm over a period of eight years.

Irene M. Scott pled guilty Tuesday to three counts of wire fraud and one count of bank fraud in connection with the theft of approximately $1,696,996 from her law firm's operating account.

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According to court documents, Scott worked for the firm between August 2011 and February 2020, performing duties like issuing business credit cards to employees and closing card accounts for employees who left the firm. She also maintained the firm's financial ledgers, paid vendors, and operating expenses.

The US Attorney's Office says that Scott admitted to using three office credit cards assigned to employees or former employees to make non-firm-related purchases totaling over $1.2 million from 2012-2020. An estimated three-fourths of that money reportedly went to support her husband’s outdoor lighting business.  She concealed on the firm’s financial ledgers credit card payments she made using the firm’s operating account. 

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Scott also stole an estimated $417,000 by fraudulently withdrawing from the firm’s operating bank account without knowledge or authorization from any member of the firm about 200 times during a two-year period beginning in January 2018, says the US Attorney's Office. She disguised those withdrawals in the firm’s ledger as vendor payments. 

Scott remains on bond. Sentencing has been scheduled for November.