Former bank teller sentenced for stealing nearly $90,000 deposited by Georgia convenience store

 A former Candler County bank teller has been sentenced to federal prison after pleading guilty to skimming money from a convenience store’s deposits.

Kayla Monroe Evans, 32, of Metter, Ga., was sentenced to two months in prison followed by two months of home confinement after pleading guilty to Bank Fraud, said Jill E. Steinberg, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. U.S. District Court Chief Judge J. Randal Hall also ordered Evans to pay $97,165 in restitution and to serve five years of supervised release.

“Kayla Evans violated the trust of her employer and its customer, and is being held accountable for her theft,” said U.S. Attorney Steinberg. “This sentence offers assurance that those who commit fraud will be brought to justice.”

As described in court documents and testimony, Evans worked as a teller for the Synovus Bank in Metter, where a local convenience store maintained its account. An auditor for the store began noticing discrepancies between the amount of cash presented to the bank for deposit compared to the amount credited to the store and worked with the bank to determine the cause.

A subsequent investigation found that from July 2019 through February 2021, Evans personally handled the store’s deposits, frequently skimming cash for her personal use from the amount presented and crediting a smaller deposit to the store. In total, Evans stole approximately $87,748 from the convenience store’s deposits. As part of her plea agreement, Evans agreed to pay restitution for the full loss caused by her criminal conduct, and to never seek employment in any financial institution.

“We are pleased to work with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in bringing to justice those who commit bank fraud for their own personal gain,” said Brian Tucker, Special Agent in Charge, Eastern Region, Office of Inspector General for the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

The federal investigation was led by the Office of Inspector General for the Federal Reserve Board and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. The investigation received support from the Candler County Sheriff’s Office, the District Attorney’s Office for the Middle Judicial Circuit, and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.  The case was prosecuted for the United States by Assistant U.S. Attorney Matthew A. Josephson.

Also see Former Candler Co Bank Teller Pleads Guilty to Stealing Nearly $90,000 Deposited by Convenience Store