A Wayne County woman has been bound over for trial on charges of embezzling from her employer in Whitmore Lake.
Kendra Marie Lewis, 42, of Redford, is accused of stealing more than $176,000 from Big Ike’s Roofing Co., where she worked as the office manager.
Following a preliminary examination on Tuesday in Washtenaw County District Court, Lewis was bound over on a single count of embezzlement of $100,000 or more, a 20-year felony, and two counts of failure to file taxes, 5-year felonies.
However, Judge Cedric Simpson modified Lewis’s bond from a $5,000 personal recognizance bond to a $75,000 cash/surety bond, and Lewis was taken into custody. Lewis was also charged as a third-time habitual offender based on her prior criminal record.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel says the owner of the company discovered that Lewis was embezzling when a new office manager was hired.
Lewis is believed to have embezzled approximately $176,653 in 2020 and 2021 by writing checks payable to herself and then recording them in the business ledger as being payable to various vendors for lesser amounts.
“Theft, especially that which targets our state’s small businesses, causes harm to individual proprietors and drives up prices for all the community’s residents,” Nessel said. “I will not hesitate to prosecute those who break the law.”
Lewis’ next court hearing is a pre-trial conference on March 27, 2023, in front of Judge Arianne E. Slay of the Washtenaw County Circuit Court.
