A Selden woman was sentenced to up to four years in prison for stealing more than $1 million from two Long Island construction companies, one of which she worked for as a bookkeeper.
Between February 2017 and May 2023, Mary Spora worked as a bookkeeper for construction equipment company Independent Equipment Corp. in Westbury and building material company Coastal Materials in Farmingdale. The defendant embezzled a total of $1,152,160 from Coastal and another company under the same owner, Big Apple Concrete Supply, Inc. in Mineola, by writing approximately 113 unauthorized checks from their bank accounts.
Spora was responsible for handling accounts payable for Independent and Coastal, and recording payments in the companies’ books. She was also responsible for preparing payments to vendors and had access to the accounting and payroll software for all three companies, as well as their financial records.
According to certified bank records, more than 75 checks from Coastal, totaling more than $608,000, were deposited into a bank account held by Spora and her husband between March 2, 2017, and February 1, 2023. Bank records also indicate that more than 30 checks, totaling more than $540,000, were deposited into the same bank account from Big Apple between February 15, 2017, and May 25, 2023.
An audit of Coastal and Big Apple’s payroll software records also reflected that Spora made an entry into the software designating a company owned by her husband as payee for the checks and altered the payee information of those checks to make it appear as though a company that does do business with Coastal and Big Apple was the appropriate payee.
A review of Spora’s bank accounts indicated that between 2017 and 2021, she spent the stolen money on personal expenses, credit card and retail store payments, and travel.
Spora, 59, pleaded guilty on August 14, 2024, before Judge Tammy Robbins to two counts of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree (a Class C felony) and one count of Falsifying Business Records in the First Degree (a Class E felony). She was sentenced on May 28 to 1-1/3 to 4 years in prison. The Nassau County District Attorney’s Office recommended a sentence of 2 to 6 years in prison.
“This defendant selfishly took advantage of her employer, abusing her position and access to siphon more than a million dollars from two businesses over the course of six years,” said Nassau DA Anne Donnelly. “Financial crimes hurt businesses and the employees who work for them. We will continue to investigate and follow the money when an allegation of financial fraud is made and hold defendants accountable for using deceit and deception to line their own pockets.”