A Kelowna woman was sentenced to six years in custody and has been ordered to pay a restitution order of $ 1 million after being found guilty of defrauding a community agency that provides services to people with disabilities.

Carey Earl was convicted of fraud over $5,000, by a jury of 12 people in the fall of 2023, after stealing more than $1.3 million from her employers at Access Human Resources.

On May 15, Earl was sentenced to six years in custody in addition to a 1 million dollar restitution order.

The order means that Earl is required to pay compensation to the victims of her crime.

Earl embezzled the funds between 2010 and 2018 while working as the bookkeeper at Access Human Resources.

The Kelowna-based community support agency initially filed a civil suit against Earl in the B.C. Supreme Court in November 2018, after discovering inconsistencies in the bookkeeping.

Crown counsel filed criminal charges against Earl in 2022, and the case went to trial in the fall of 2023 before a jury.

She withheld from taking the stand as a witness during the criminal trial but did file a response to the lawsuit, claiming that all transactions and misappropriated or embezzled funds or payments had to be approved by both herself and the owner and operating director of the company, Cliff Andrsuko.

In the response, she claimed that Andrsuko would have had to sign off on all transactions and alleged that he was also engaging in similar behaviour.

Andrsuko vehemently disagreed with all suggestions that he was aware or complicit in any fraud while on the stand during the trial.

The jury ultimately decided that Earl was guilty of fraud over $5,000, which is considered an indictable offence under the Criminal Code of Canada, meaning it is considered a serious crime and is associated with severe penalties.

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