Used Money to Pay for Wedding, Luxury Travel and a Failed Restaurant
A South Carolina man who worked as a supervisor for the credit department at a Melville-based distributor of medical and dental supplies, was indicted for stealing $1.6 million from his employer.
Tony Ream, also known as Tony Ream-Hendley and Tony Moul Ream, was a credit supervisor for the company. Over the course of four years, Ream allegedly sent wire transfers totaling approximately $1.6 million from the company’s bank account to a bank account that he controlled.
The arraignment was held on May 30 before Magistrate Judge Steven I. Locke. Joseph Nocella, Jr., United States attorney for the Eastern District of New York, and Christopher G. Raia, the assistant director in charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) New York field office, announced the arraignment.
As set forth in court filings and statements made in court, Ream was hired by the company in 2019 to work in their credit department. Starting in 2020 as a credit supervisor, Ream allegedly stole corporate funds from customer refund accounts and diverted the funds to his own accounts.
Additionally, while in his role as supervisor, Ream allegedly deceived employees whom he supervised into taking steps that assisted him in carrying out his fraudulent scheme. Ream allegedly spent tens of thousands of dollars of the proceeds of his fraud on his wedding, hundreds of thousands on a failed restaurant venture in South Carolina, and tens of thousands on luxury international vacations.
“As alleged, Ream is a thief who abused his authority and betrayed his employer to fund his lifestyle, including paying for the renovations of a restaurant he opened, footing the bill for his own wedding, and traveling around the world, all on the company’s dime,” Nocella said. “Embezzling company funds is a serious crime and my Office will vigorously prosecute this case to ensure Ream is held accountable for his brazen scheme.”
“Tony Ream allegedly embezzled over $1 million from his former company by diverting corporate funds to his personal account and deceiving his subordinates into perpetuating this theft,” stated Raia. “Ream allegedly abused his position and stole from his former company to fund his extravagant expenses. The FBI remains committed to investigating any individual who orchestrates a scheme to exploit their company to finance personal wish lists.”