Michelle Wilshire, 50, of Hickory, N.C., was sentenced today to 46 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release for embezzling more than $900,000 from her employer, announced Russ Ferguson, U.S. Attorney for the Western District of North Carolina.
U.S. Attorney Ferguson is joined in making today’s announcement by Donald “Trey” Eakins, Special Agent in Charge of the Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation, Charlotte Field Office, and Rodney Hopkins, Inspector in Charge of the Atlanta Division of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which oversees Charlotte.
According to court documents, from 2016 to 2021, Wilshire was employed by a family-owned business located in Conover, N.C., identified as Company A. During the relevant time, Wilshire was in charge of the company’s Comdata account – a third-party payment processing and debit card issuing service – which the company used for fleet management and payment services for its drivers. Wilshire executed the scheme by issuing multiple Comdata prepaid debit cards in her name and in the names of other individuals, including former company employees, fictitious employees, and current employees who were not aware the cards existed. Wilshire then caused Comdata to load funds onto the prepaid debit cards, which she then withdrew via ATM cash withdrawals. Between November 2017, and July 2021, Wilshire withdrew more than $528,000 from prepaid Comdata debit cards.
In addition to the debit card scheme, Wilshire embezzled company funds by using Comdata’s Comchek and Comchek Mobile services to issue checks in the defendant’s name and to make multiple wire transfers into Wilshire’s personal bank account, totaling over $315,000. Wilshire also caused more than $58,000 of the company’s funds to be transferred through Comdata into the bank account of a former company employee.
In addition to the embezzlement scheme, Wilshire also prepared and filed individual income tax returns for tax years 2017 through 2021, which did not include the additional funds Wilshire received through her embezzlement scheme.
On July 15, 2024, Wilshire pleaded guilty to wire fraud and making and subscribing a false tax return.
In making today’s announcement, U.S. Attorney Ferguson thanked IRS-CI and USPIS for their investigation of the case.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Mike Savage and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Eric Frick of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte prosecuted the case.