Las Cruces Embezzlement

By KRWG News

Las Cruces – A Dona Ana County jury has convicted a Las Cruces woman of 21 embezzlement counts after she was accused of taking almost $11,000 from her employer, a title loan company.

Elizabeth Marie Martinez, 34, took payments from customers and doctored records to hide it for 15 months in 2006 and 2007, prosecutor Richard Wellborn said.

The theft was discovered in September 2007 by corporate officials in Atlanta. Despite being the only employee at the Las Cruces office, Martinez claimed someone had framed her.

She is free on bond but faces more than 15 years in prison at sentencing, which will be scheduled within six weeks.

Wellborn called the case "your common, run-of-the-mill embezzlement."

___

Information from: Las Cruces Sun-News, http://www.lcsun-news.com

Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.