A woman from Ellington is facing a slew of charges after allegedly stealing hundreds of thousands of dollars from a law firm she worked at, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.
A federal grand jury returned an indictment charging Heather Murdock, 57, with fraud and tax offenses stemming from an embezzlement scheme, officials said.
Murdock appeared in court on March 19, pleaded not guilty to 12 charges and was released on bond.
The indictment alleges that Murdock was employed as a bookkeeper and office manager at a Hartford law firm. She is accused of writing hundreds of false checks, made payable to herself, between 2010 and 2022.
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Officials said she forged the law firm's signature and changed bookkeeping system entries to make it appear as though the checks were being sent to legitimate vendors.
The woman would then deposit the forged checks into her own bank account. The indictment says she stole approximately $583,953.
Officials said Murdock also stole cash payments made by tenants of properties owned by the law firm. She stole an additional $251,314 through this scheme, according to officials.
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Officials said she failed to pay taxes on the embezzled funds, and on her own wages, which amount to nearly $250,000 in underreported tax obligations, according to the indictment.
The FBI, IRS and Criminal Investigation Division are conducting an investigation.
