Situation

Several board members of a highly successful company received an anonymous email alleging that their Chief Financial Officer (CFO) was embezzling funds from the company. Unclear whether the email was a hoax, or a genuine whistle being blown, the Board decided to retain CRI to investigate.

Findings

A lengthy and multi-pronged investigation ultimately substantiated the claims. We found that the CFO had formed a company with a name that was one letter off from the company that employed him. Our research detailed the specific steps through which the CFO had been able to manipulate financial accounts and evade detection. In short, as CFO, he had the authority to innocuously revise several of the company’s internal policies to obscure the digital trail to a shell company that he had established using an alias. A review of his background also revealed multiple discrepancies, including fraudulent degrees and references.

Outcome

In addition to swiftly terminating its CFO, the Board used the findings from the investigation to develop more robust financial security protocols and prevent future episodes of embezzlement.