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Woman who stole to pay gambling debt sentenced

Friday, July 1, 2005 | 9:45 a.m.

ST. LOUIS -- A former bookkeeper at a St. Louis area business was sentenced to more than two years in prison Thursday for stealing from her employer to feed a gambling habit.

Melody Schuler, 42, of Bethalto, Ill., pleaded guilty in March to one felony count of interstate transmission of stolen money. In addition to the two-year, three-month prison term, she was ordered to pay restitution of $195,000 to First Choice Homes, a modular home business in Fenton.

Schuler was under court order from St. Clair County, Ill., prohibiting her from going to casinos as part of a probation imposed in 2002 for a theft conviction, U.S. Attorney James Martin said.

From November 2002 to May 2004, Schuler embezzled money from First Choice Homes by forging the signature of the owners on business checks, some of which were made payable to her, and some on cashier's checks she deposited into her personal account.

Schuler falsified records to make the owners believe vendors were being paid, when they were not.

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