Livingston Woman Embezzled $243K From Apple, Went Shopping At Victoria's Secret: Prosecutor

LIVINGSTON, NJ — A New Jersey grand jury has indicted a former Apple Inc. employee for allegedly embezzling about $243,000 from the company by double-billing the tech giant for reimbursement of business expenses on her company credit card and then using the resulting funds to go shopping at luxury stores.

According to the New Jersey Office of the Attorney General, Toni Ann Branca, 41, of Livingston, a former administrative assistant for Apple, was indicted yesterday on a charge of second-degree theft by deception.

She was charged as a result of an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau, prosecutors said.

According to prosecutors:

“As an administrative assistant for Apple, Branca worked mostly from her home in Livingston and was responsible for arranging employee training, travel and parking for her region. She was authorized to pay for company expenses such as conference rooms and employee parking with a company-issued American Express credit card in her name. It is alleged that Branca submitted dozens of duplicate requests for reimbursement of business expenses charged on her company-issued Amex card.”

Prosecutors said that Apple made the duplicate payments to Branca’s Amex account, and Branca allegedly used the resulting credit balances to shop for clothes, electronics and furniture. Between 2013 and 2016, Branca allegedly used the Amex card for more than $110,000 in personal retail spending, including purchases at Victoria’s Secret, Gucci, Louis Vuitton, and Home Goods.

Branca allegedly stole a total of approximately $243,000, including $18,542 that she received in the form of two checks for expenses she said she paid personally, and $10,000 that was applied to the Amex card as a merchant credit which she failed to disclose to the company, prosecutors said.

Apple initiated its investigation of Branca after it discovered numerous Victoria’s Secret charges on her company-issued Amex card. After conducting an internal investigation, Apple referred the case to the Division of Criminal Justice, prosecutors stated.

Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a criminal fine of up to $150,000.

The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Mary C. Jacobson, who assigned the case to Essex County, where Branca will be ordered to appear in court at a later date for arraignment, prosecutors said.

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