Woman accused of stealing from Scranton title insurance company
Apr. 19—A former employee stole more than $12,000 from a Scranton title insurance company, using some of the money to pay personal bills as she shuffled funds among client accounts in a bid to cover up the theft, investigators say.
Cristine A. Palermo, 47, 1185 Monkey Hollow Road, Monroe Twp. in Wyoming County, surrendered Monday at the Lackawanna County Criminal Justice Center to face theft and related charges.
Palermo, a former closing associate at Reliable Abstract Co., 224 Adams Ave., was released on $12,000 unsecured bail after her arraignment by Magisterial District Judge Paul Keeler. Her preliminary hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday.
She used her position at Reliable Abstract to steal $12,443 from the firm between 2017, and December, according to an arrest affidavit filed by county Detective Lisa Bauer.
The district attorney's office opened its investigation in February after it was contacted by attorney William Steppacher and his wife, Mardi Steppacher, who are the owners of the title insurance company.
The Steppachers initially became concerned and started looking at how Palermo was handling clients' money after Mardi Steppacher discovered a file containing checks, some dating back to 2017, on Palermo's desk in September, the affidavit said.
The Steppachers said it eventually became clear Palermo was taking money from client accounts and attempted to conceal the activity by moving funds around in dozens of accounts, according to the affidavit.
The district attorney's office used search warrants to obtain records for Palermo's account at Wayne Bank, along with records of certain payments made using Reliable Abstract or its client accounts.
The investigation found Palermo issued a total of 12 checks totaling $7,971, including five checks for $3,884 to herself, four checks for $1,824 to Pennsylvania American Water, two checks to Comcast for $600 and one check for $1,663 for a vehicle payment, the affidavit said.
Palermo, who previously lived on Throop Street in Dunmore, diverted another $4,472 in cash for her personal use, investigators said.
In an interview at the district attorney's office on April 7, Palermo admitted paying personal bills with the missing money and spending some on her children, the affidavit said.
In addition theft by unlawful taking, Palermo is charged with access device fraud, receiving stolen property and misapplication of entrusted property.
Contact the writer: dsingleton@timesshamrock.com, 570-348-9132
