Accountant Charged With Bilking $4 Million from Clients
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An accountant was arrested yesterday on charges of stealing more than $4 million from three clothing companies he worked for by overstating amounts they owed for taxes and keeping the excess money for himself.
Stephen Schor, arrested at his Upper East Side home, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment in Manhattan’s state Supreme Court on charges of first- and second-degree grand larceny. If convicted, he faces up to 25 years in prison.
Mr. Schor’s lawyer, Kenneth C. Murphy, asked for bail of $25,000, saying his client “intends to face these charges.” But Justice Brenda Soloff set bail at $150,000 cash or bond and scheduled his next court appearance for March 7.
Mr. Schor stole the money from three Manhattan-based importers of men’s clothing — Andre Romanelli Inc., Andre Romanelli International and Van Gils International Inc. — from May 2000 until August 2004, District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said.
He used the money to buy a Mercedes-Benz automobile, to pay for car insurance, medical bills, and to fund his personal business accounts, the district attorney said.
In one of the two schemes Mr. Schor used, Mr. Morgenthau said, he funneled more than $3.8 million out of the Romanelli companies into a secret bank account he opened in the name of “Andre Romanelli Inc. c/o Stephen Schor.”
