Federal authorities are pursuing a charge against a New Hampshire woman that accuses her of using her former job as a bookkeeper at a drilling business in the town of Norway to write nearly $750,000 in business checks to herself.

Janis Woods, 65, of Conway, New Hampshire, has not been arrested or appeared in court to face the charge. But a federal prosecutor filed paperwork in U.S. District Court in Portland on Wednesday requesting that Woods be summoned to the court to face a charge of bank fraud.

It is unclear whether Woods has yet received the summons requested by Assistant U.S. Attorney Halsey Frank. Court records show no scheduled dates for Woods to face the charge. Frank said by phone Thursday that he expects a court date will be set soon.

The paperwork Frank filed with the court included a criminal complaint and an affidavit by FBI agent Paul Pritchard outlining the accusations against Woods.

Woods had access at her job at Grover Gundrilling to a signature stamp with the name of the company’s chief executive officer and allegedly used it between January 2009 and January 2012 to write 169 checks from the business account to herself.

She is accused of depositing the checks totaling $742,081 into her personal bank account at branches in New Hampshire and then writing about $480,000 worth of checks payable to a restaurant, Fire 21 Pizza, owned by her son in North Conway, New Hampshire.

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Grover Gundrilling management discovered the alleged fraud in 2012 and the company president, Chris Hester, confronted Woods on Jan. 31, 2012, by asking her to produce some information and documentation.

“Hester asked Woods for an explanation. Woods said she would have to take a look at it and would get back to Hester, but did not feel well. Woods left work, never returned, and was terminated,” Pritchard wrote in the affidavit.

After Grover Gundrilling officials investigated further and discovered there was much less money in the company bank account than they expected, they contacted local police.

Woods’ attorney, William Childs, did not return a phone call seeking comment.

A conviction on the bank fraud charge could result in up to 30 years in federal prison and a nearly $1.4 million fine, court records show.

Scott Dolan can be reached at 791-6304 or at:

sdolan@pressherald.com

Twitter: @scottddolan


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