Former Cox Workers Indicted For Embezzlement

Two former Cox Communications employees were indicted by a federal grand  jury on charges they embezzled more than $900,000 from company coffers into their own personal bank accounts.

According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Georgia, Joysha Flucker, 36, of Decatur, Ga., and Sakia Allen, 38, of Jonesboro, Ga., previously worked for Cox, where they had access to the company’ electronic invoicing system  that tracked company payments to various third parties. According to U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates, Flucker and Allen manipulated the electronic invoicing system so that Cox would issue duplicate payments to the third parties, which were then diverted into bank accounts under the control of Flucker and Allen. As a result of their actions, Cox suffered losses of at least $943,865.46, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.  

“Those who shamelessly steal from their employer should expect to be held accountable,” Yates said in a statement. “Companies must be able to trust their employees, especially when those employees are entrusted with handling money. The charges against these defendants reflect that they violated the law as well as their employer’s confidence.”

Flucker was arraigned before U.S. Magistrate Judge Russell G. Vineyard on Sept. 10 on the charges and was detained. Allen previously entered a plea of guilty to one count of wire fraud on July 25, before U.S. District Judge William S. Duffey, Jr.

The indictment charges the defendants with multiple counts of wire fraud and one count of conspiracy. Each wire fraud count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison and the conspiracy count carries a maximum sentence of 5 years in prison. Each count also carries a fine of up to $250,000. The United States is also seeking the forfeiture of all funds derived from this scheme. The United States previously forfeited a house and luxury automobiles as proceeds of the alleged offense.

This case is being investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation with the assistance of the Sandy Springs Police Department.

Assistant United States Attorneys Mary F. Kruger and Thomas J. Krepp are prosecuting the case.