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Monschein Employee Arrested In Embezzlement
L Goncalves
Lori Gonsalves

A Modesto woman who worked for years at a Riverbank firm has been arrested on suspicion of embezzling from the company.

According to information from the Riverbank Police Services, 35-year-old Lori Gonsalves of Modesto was arrested on Thursday, Dec. 11 by Riverbank Police Services Detectives for embezzlement in excess of $300,000 from her employer.

The arrest came after more than a three-month long investigation.

On Aug. 25, Detective Jesse Tovar received a complaint from Monschein Industries in Riverbank regarding Gonsalves, who had been employed by the company since 2000. The business had become suspicious of her when cash deposits were found missing. During the investigation Detective Tovar discovered numerous unauthorized purchases with the company’s credit cards, forged company checks made out to Gonsalves, and a large amount of money which had been missing for several years.

Deputy Tovar estimated the embezzled value by Gonsalves in excess of $300,000.

On Thursday, Detectives and Probation Officers served a search warrant at Gonsalves’ residence in Modesto. There, authorities said, they were able to recover numerous items which were fraudulently purchased with the company’s credit cards. Lori Gonsalves was arrested for embezzlement, grand theft and computer related crimes.

Anyone with information about this investigation can call Detective Jesse Tovar at 209-863-7136. If you have any tips, you can leave an anonymous tip by calling Crime Stoppers at (209) 521-4636. Tipsters can also e-mail tips at http://www.modestopolice.com/CrimeStoppers, or text them to CRIMES (274637) by typing "Tip704" plus the message and be eligible for a cash reward.