A Pearl River woman has been charged with stealing $30,000 from the Pearl River insurance company where she worked, according to Rockland County District Attorney Thomas P. Zugibe.
Lynn M. Kavanagh, 49, of 131 North Main St., Pearl River, is accused of one count of third-degree grand for using company money at Griffith Insurance Agency to pay for her personal insurance and for stealing thousands in cash that customers had paid toward insurance premiums.
Zugibe said the thefts took place from April 2008 to June 2010 while Kavanagh worked as a bookkeeper for the insurance agency. Zugibe said Kavanagh did not have check-writing privileges with the agency.
An audit of the insurance company's records showed the thefts did not affect the insurance coverage of the agency's clients, according to the Districty Attorney's Office.
The arrest resulted from an investigation by the Rockland County Special Investigations Unit and the Orangetown Police Department. Kavanagh was arraigned in Orangetown Town in Orangeburg Court by Judge Richard Finning and released pending an Oct. 18 hearing.
Kavanagh faces up to seven years in prison, if convicted, Zugibe said.
CORRECTION: The District Attorney's Office first reported the thefts had left insurance clients underinsured or uninsured. Officials said that is what was first suspected, but an audit revealed thefts were done in such a way that insurance coverage remained in effect.
