On June 18, 2015, St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office was called to Coastal Orthopedic and Sports Medicine’s Office in reference to Jayme Merchant, bookkeeper, embezzling money from the business.
According to Sheriff Mascara, Merchant had embezzled over $185,000 in a two year period.
As a bookkeeper, Merchant was able to direct additional funds into her personal accounts. Merchant did this almost every two weeks.
When questioned by detectives, Merchant confessed to stealing the funds.
Merchant also stated she had done this before, but repaid the money to the doctor, avoiding criminal charges.
Merchant was arrested on 1 count of 1st Degree Grant Theft ($50,000 bond), 1 count of Organized Fraud ($50,000 bond), and 6 counts of Uttering a Forged Instrument ($10,000 each).
