EDITOR’S NOTE: Federal officials are not providing a mugshot of Nathaniel Wills at this time.
ANDERSON, Ind. — A former Anderson accountant will spend the next three years in federal prison after embezzling nearly $1 million from his employer’s payroll between 2020 and 2022.
Nathaniel Wills, 34, of Anderson, was sentenced this week to 41 months in federal prison and three years of supervised release. Wills was previously ordered to pay over $870,000 in restitution after pleading guilty to wire fraud over the summer.
Court documents show that for nearly six years Wills was employed as both an accountant and Director of Administration at an unspecified Indiana business. In these roles, he was in charge of writing and signing checks, making electronic payments and maintaining accounting ledgers.
Prosecutors said that starting in Aug. 2020 and continuing until at least Feb. 2022, Wills defrauded the company out of almost $1 million by transferring money from the company’s payroll into his personal bank accounts. The stolen funds were then used to pay off outstanding personal debts and fulfill online gambling wagers.
To try and conceal his scheme, authorities said Wills filed false invoices, listed jobs as unpaid and voided checks. He also reportedly got an $80,000 principal advance from his employer’s line of credit to help balance the company payroll.
“For a year and a half, this defendant repaid the trust of his employer with deceit and theft, helping himself to nearly one million dollars and cooking the books to hide the evidence,” said Zachary A. Myers, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana.
In total, Wills reportedly stole $952,237.06 from his employer through 120 transactions. His embezzlement reportedly caused “substantial financial hardship” to his employer.
“Fraud and embezzlement can have devastating effects on the victim, individuals and companies,” Myers said. “The federal prison sentence imposed here demonstrates that those who commit financial crimes will pay a serious price.”
The FBI investigated the case against Wills. FBI Indianapolis Special Agent in Charge Herbert J. Stapleton said that the Bureau will investigate financial crimes to the highest degree.
“Anyone who believes they can steal without consequence will find out the FBI aggressively pursues those who exploit their positions of trust for personal gain to ensure they are held accountable,” Stapleton said.
U.S. District Judge James P. Hanlon imposed the federal prison sentence against Wills. U.S. Attorneys Meredith Wood and Tiffany J. Preston prosecuted the case.
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