In this episode, a once-trusted employee reemerges after prison with the same charm that once won over colleagues. But beneath the polished image, new schemes quietly unfold, raising the question: how far can fraud go before strong controls bring it to light?
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Hello, I'm Dan Ramey, contributing editor to Internal Auditor Magazine's Fraud Department and president and founder of Houston Financial Forensics.
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I am pleased to introduce this episode of Fraud on the All Things Internal Audit Podcast, which provides fictionalized accounts of fraud based on actual events.
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A fraudster's second act, part one, the generous colleague.
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At first, Bridget Conrad seemed like the dream employee.
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An account manager at a regional bank, she had the kind of charm that could light up a room.
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She threw office parties, sent surprise gifts, even raised champagne glasses for the smallest wins.
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Her co-workers adored her.
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They called her loyal, thoughtful, and generous.
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Bridget made work feel like a family, one former colleague recalled.
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But behind the smile and the champagne toasts was a scheme no one suspected.
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Between 2012 and 2014, Conrad rerouted more than half $1,000,000 from her employer's vendor payments straight into her personal bank account across town.
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She had access to the records, the authority to move money, and the confidence that no one was watching too closely.
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Her generosity was her cover.
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The parties, the gifts, the celebrations, every bit of it funded with stolen money.
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The illusion collapsed in 2014.
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Federal prosecutors charged Conrad, and the courtroom filled with stunned colleagues who felt betrayed.
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The CFO summed it up.
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Many of Ms.
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Conrad's colleagues would have had to work for over 10 years to earn what she stole in just two.
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The sentence, 33 months in federal prison, five years of supervised release, and $462,000 in restitution.
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To many, that would have been the end of the story.
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For Conrad, it was only intermission.
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Part 2, a fresh start.
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Prison life didn't dim Conrad's charm.
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By all accounts, she was a model inmate, generous, friendly, even helpful with financial advice.
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She also learned something new, how to obtain a social security number that would slip past most background checks.
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When Conrad walked free,
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She relocated to Georgia.
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At first, she lived quietly, modestly.
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Nearly a decade passed before she returned to her criminal ways.
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Her first stop was Legacy Realty, where a staffing agency placed her as an accounts payable clerk.
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The company trusted the agency's background check.
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Nothing alarming came up, so she was hired.
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Conrad dazzled her new colleagues just as she had before and impressed controller, Troy Martin, who considered hiring her full-time.
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But business slowed.
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Her position was cut, and Conrad moved on.
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Soon, she was working at
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Rise Above Construction as a staff accountant.
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When business picked up again at Legacy, Martin asked her back.
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She agreed.
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But here was the twist.
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Conrad never left Rise Above.
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She quietly worked both jobs, hiding the overlap.
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At Rise Above, where she had access to payroll and banking, she found her opening.
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Part 3, the payroll play.
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The irregularities started small.
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Vendor payments that didn't reconcile, duplicate invoices and unexplained changes.
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An internal audit at Rise Above uncovered the truth.
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Conrad was manipulating payroll records.
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When employees left the company, she never terminated them in the system.
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Instead, she switched their bank account information to her own.
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Conrad's scheme was simple and bold, and it netted her $150,000.
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When confronted, she didn't deny it.
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She just didn't stick around.
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Calmly, she walked out, got in her car, and drove straight to her other job at Legacy Realty.
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She logged in, sent emails, followed up on invoices, as if nothing had happened.
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But this time, her past couldn't stay hidden.
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Rise Above's CEO picked up the phone and called Martin.
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You need to know, he said.
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Bridget is committing fraud against our company.
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We have the evidence.
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Part 4.
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Caught in the Net.
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Legacy Realty acted fast.
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They brought in an internal audit consultant, combed through controls, and checked for signs of fraud.
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Fortunately, their systems held strong.
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Dual approvals for payments.
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a third-party vendor platform to prevent bank account changes, segregated payroll functions.
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Conrad had tried, but the safeguards kept her from striking again.
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Both companies fired her immediately.
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Rise Above pressed charges.
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Today, Conrad is awaiting trial.
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Her story shows how easily charm can mask deception.
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and how a fraudster's second act can be just as costly as the first.
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You've been listening to all things internal audit fraud.
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Want the full story and bonus?
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Check out this month's issue of Internal Auditor Magazine at internalauditor.theia.org.
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Stay sharp, stay ethical, and stay tuned for the next episode of all things internal audit fraud.
