Former law firm bookkeeper convicted

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February 13, 2009

By KENNETH HART - The Independent The Daily Independent Fri Feb 13, 2009, 11:37 PM EST

ASHLAND — A former bookkeeper for a Catlettsburg law firm was convicted Thursday of swindling her ex-employer out of thousands of dollars.

A U.S. District Court jury found Ronda Nixon guilty of 11 counts of wire fraud, two counts of bank fraud, three counts of aggravated identity theft and one count of use of an unauthorized access device.

The four-day trial stemmed from an indictment alleging that Nixon stole $93,477 from the law firm of Pruitt & Thorner.

According to the government, Nixon had access to the firm’s bank accounts and to the identifying information of her boss, Garis L. Pruitt, the firm’s senior partner.

In October 2006, at Pruitt’s direction, Nixon obtained an American Express credit card for the firm that was to have been used to make business purchases for the firm. However, according to trial testimony, Nixon used the card to make numerous personal purchases between October 2006 and July 2007, without permission from Pruitt.

To pay the credit card bills, Nixon would withdraw money from the firm’s bank accounts. To replace the money in those accounts, she opened an American Express Bank line of credit, using Pruitt’s name and Social Security number, and forging his signature to obtain funds from the account.

Nixon withdrew $19,500 from the American Express account to cover up the credit card charges, according to federal prosecutors.

In addition to paying off a $10,600 student loan, Nixon used the law firm’s credit card to purchase airline tickets to Las Vegas, cosmetics from May Kay, Victoria’s Secret clothing and massages.

Judge David L. Bunning has not set a date for Nixon’s sentencing.

KENNETH HART can be reached at khart@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2654.

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