TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) — A Tallahassee man is out on fraud charges after deputies say he used his position at First Commerce Credit Union to embezzle nearly $37,000 over a two year period.
According to court documents, an internal investigation at First Commerce Credit Union revealed that 35-year-old Christopher Hutchens had stole a total of $36,700.
In October 2018, a fraud investigator for the credit union reported to the Leon County Sheriff's Office that money had been stolen. Documents from the credit union show that Hutchens had been conducting an ongoing "scheme" throughout the time of his employment with the credit union.
Documents say the first time he stole money from the credit union's vault was in April 2016.
Investigators say in May 2018, Hutchens was transferred to a different First Commerce location. A couple days later, an employee discovered that the vault was short nearly $37,000 of cash, according to documents.
When the employee approached Hutchens about it he stated, "she shouldn't worry about it and he would take care of it."
During the investigation, deputies discovered that Hutchens had gained electronic access from his former branch and had transferred the money that was in the vault to the electronic teller at his current branch. According to deputies, Hutchens had been making multiple electronic money transfers to and from the vault on various occasions.
During an interview with investigators, Hutchens admitted to stealing money due to personal hardships. At the end of the investigation, deputies say Hutchens was fired from the credit union.
Based on the evidence, Hutchens was arrested and transported to the Leon County Detention Center on Friday. He is facing a series of fraud charges including organized scheme to defraud and grand theft.
Hutchens has since bonded out.
