Press Release
FORMER BOOKKEEPER AT LAW FIRM PLEADS GUILTY TO BANK FRAUD CHARGES
November 13, 2007
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
R. Alexander Acosta, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and Jonathan I. Solomon, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation, announced today that defendant, Sara San Martin, a/k/a/ Sara Echeverria, a resident of Miami, pled guilty today before United States District Court Judge Adalberto Jordan to two counts of bank fraud.
William T. Huggett was an attorney in Miami, Florida with his own law firm, The Huggett Law Firm, when he died unexpectedly of a stroke on August 31, 2004. At the time of Huggett’s death, Sara San Martin was the firm’s bookkeeper and office manager. San Martin had worked with the firm for approximately 13 years. During this time, she managed the office, hired employees, and payed the firm’s bills and the personal bills of William Huggett using William Huggett’s checkbooks.
One week after Huggett’s death, two checks were posted to two separate personal accounts of William Huggett. The first check in the amount of $236,800.00 was posted to Huggett’s personal account at BankUnited on September 7, 2004. The check was made out to Wachovia Bank, N.A. and was the payoff for San Martin’s personal mortgage. The second check in the amount of $23,079.95 was posted to William Huggett’s high performance money market account at Wachovia Bank, N.A. That check was the payoff for San Martin’s loan for a new 2003 Dodge Ram 150 purchased in May 2003.
San Martin admitted in court that she forged William Huggett’s signature on both checks and that at the time that she did so she knew that he was deceased and that her actions were unauthorized. San Martin faces a maximum statutory term of imprisonment of thirty (30) years for each count of bank fraud.
Mr. Acosta commended the investigative efforts of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. This case was being prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Lois Foster-Steers.
A copy of this press release may be found on the website of the United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.usdoj.gov/usao/fls. Related court documents and information may be found on the website of the District Court for the Southern District of Florida at http://www.flsd.uscourts.gov or on http://pacer.flsd.uscourts.gov.
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