A former Naples Ballet manager faces fraud charges after authorities say she stole more than $100,000 over three years.
Nicole Christine Saunders, 54, faces charges of scheme to defraud, grand theft over $100,000 and criminal use of personal identification information.
According to Naples police, on Dec. 5, 2022, the CEO of Naples Ballet, a nonprofit organization at 1005 5th Ave. N., contacted police to report a loss of over $100,000 through fraudulent acts.
Police said the business fell victim to a complex fraud scheme, allegedly orchestrated by Saunders, their office manager over four years. Detectives confirmed that the sole person responsible was Saunders, Naples police said.
According to police, the investigation revealed Saunders established a fictitious company used to process payments for credit cards belonging to Naples Ballet.
Police report Saunders conducted 298 fraudulent transactions between 2019 and 2022, totaling $153,969.84 that were credited to a PayPal account she controlled. Saunders then used the PayPal account to obtain cash advances at a casino totaling $134,643.19.
Court documents say Saunders last logged into the account in December 2022. The account received 881 payments from Naples Ballet.
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Saunders was transported Monday to the Collier County Jail on a warrant charging her with the three counts. She’s next due in court June 17 for her arraignment.
The company’s CEO, Toshiko Tompkins, opened the ballet studio in 2008. Funding sources for the nonprofit include event ticket sales, ballet, homeschool programs and adult ballet, according to the complaint.
Saunders was a Naples Ballet employee in charge of business accounting since January 2016, the complaint says.
Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran and Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews.
