CFO Guilty of $1M Embezzlement for Luxury

A federal jury in Chicago convicted former chief financial officer Tina Feuerstein of stealing more than $1 million from her employer over five years. (justice.gov) Feuerstein, 53, of Hanover, Pennsylvania, was found guilty on April 9, 2026, of eight counts of wire fraud after a four-day trial in U.S. District Court in Chicago. Each count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years, and U.S. District Judge LaShonda A. Hunt set sentencing for Aug. 26, 2026. (justice.gov) Prosecutors said she used a company American Express card to make more than 3,800 personal charges totaling about $1.09 million between November 2016 and February 2023. The purchases included luxury furniture, designer apparel, groceries, utility bills and trips for herself, her husband and her children. (cfodive.com) The government said the spending stayed hidden because Feuerstein falsified entries in the company’s general ledgers, deleted items from its expense-reporting system and prepared false consolidated financial statements. Prosecutors said those misstated expense totals were used by her employer to make business decisions. (justice.gov) The case shows how an executive with control over both spending and bookkeeping can move money and then alter the records that are supposed to catch the theft. In this case, the fraud charges were based on wire fraud, the federal crime often used when money or records move through electronic systems. (justice.gov) CFO Dive, citing the indictment, identified the subsidiary as York Wallcoverings, a Pennsylvania company owned by York Design Group after a 2021 merger involving Brewster Home Fashions and backed by Industrial Opportunity Partners. The Justice Department press release did not name the companies, referring instead to a Chicago-area parent and its subsidiary. (cfodive.com) The indictment described specific purchases that jurors heard about, including an $8,303 charge at Raymour & Flanigan on Dec. 11, 2022, and a $1,289.06 charge at Coach, along with charges at Michael Kors and Harley-Davidson. Those examples helped prosecutors tie the company card to personal luxury spending. (cfodive.com) Federal prosecutors also told jurors that Feuerstein had previously embezzled more than $250,000 while working in the accounting department of another company. The FBI’s Chicago field office investigated the case, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois is prosecuting it. (justice.gov) The verdict closes the trial, but not the case. Feuerstein now faces sentencing in August, when the court will decide how much prison time follows a scheme prosecutors said ran for years behind the company’s own books. (justice.gov)