Fraud Friday — Small Business Lenders must be Consultants While Lending
June 26, 2015
By Bob Coleman
Editor, fraud Friday
A fellow publisher friend of mine who is successful in another publishing niche — advising college administrators how to handle microaggressions and sexual assault issues, changed his payroll processing company from ADP to a start-up payroll company in his hometown.
They promised the same service at a lower price. Including remitting his payroll taxes to the Feds. He jumped at the offer.
You already know where this is going.
The company paid his employees on time, but pocketed his payroll tax deposits. $50,000 in payroll taxes later, the payroll company is nowhere to be found, but my friend has to pony up another $50,000 to the Feds, plus $15k in penalties and interest.
Small business lenders act as important advisors to Main Street — “that’s why we act as consultants while lending.”
In response to my last week Fraud Friday post about the bookkeeper ripping off the boss for $3 million and forcing the company into bankruptcy, leaving 20 employee’s families without income, I received this pissed-off response from one of your peers:
I read a lot of the embezzlement and fraud stories you post each week and this is one of the worst and most selfish you have reported.
Makes you wonder how many business owners are out there just like this. Not checking behind their employees and allowing one “trusted” person such control over their business is mind boggling to me. That’s why we act as consultants while lending.
You are so right.
We ask the tough questions on how they operate and the importance of running your business, not working in it.
Another amazing fact is this trusted employee could go to work look everyone in the eye every day, knowing she was hurting all of her co-workers, their families, her boss, and continue to drain this company.
Greed is one of the worst Seven Deadly Sins.
She ruined so many families’ livelihood including the trusting owner.
It’s sickening!
I hope she gets a stiff jail sentence.
I don’t know if five years in a Martha Stewart federal white collar women’s country club prison is “stiff,” but that’s where she is going says the judge.