Texarkana, Texas arrested 70-year-old George Chappel for Theft of Property after an investigation showed that over $25,000 was missing from T-Line operating funds.
According to police, when the agency’s administrators first noticed some discrepancies in the financial records, they decided to hire a certified forensic accountant to take a close look at their books. Chappel was a managerial employee who was responsible for making cash deposits from fares. They allegedly discovered that he had been involved in an elaborate scheme that basically involved him stealing money from daily deposits and then using money from later deposits to try to cover up that the original thefts had occurred.
Chappel was fired from his position in April after the thefts were discovered.
As part of our investigation, Detective Jennifer Billingsley asked the accountant to forward what they’d learned to her. After she was able to confirm the results of the forensic audit and some other critical information related to the case, she had the probable cause that she needed to get the felony theft warrant for Chappel’s arrest.
Chappel turned himself in on June 9th and was booked into the Bi-State Jail. He was released the next day after posting a $100,000 surety bond.
