Theft suspect faces new charge

SANDPOINT — A former Bonner County woman awaiting sentencing for embezzling from her former employer was charged similar crimes in western Washington earlier this year, court records show.

Pamela Ann McGrath was charged in March with first-degree identity theft in Snohomish County in March, about a month after she was charged with grand theft in Bonner County for allegedly forging signatures to cash checks belonging to Sandpoint Title.

McGrath was an escrow officer at Sandpoint Title from late 2017 to early 2018. She abruptly cleared out her belongings and said she had to attend to a family matter out of state on Jan. 4, according to a probable cause affidavit.

McGrath was confronted at her former home in Ponderay and she allegedly admitted to the misconduct, court records indicate. McGrath allegedly estimated that she may have absconded with as much as $5,000 from Sandpoint Title and explained that she developed a gambling addiction while trying to cope with the death of her parents about 10 years ago.

McGrath pleaded not guilty to the felony charge, but subsequently changed her plea and is scheduled to be sentenced on Oct. 1 in 1st District Court.

While she was being prosecuted in Bonner County, authorities in Snohomish County charged McGrath with committing identity theft in 2016.

A probable cause affidavit in that case alleges that McGrath used her position at Snohomish Escrow to issue herself four checks totaling $8,447. McGrath was seen on bank surveillance cameras cashing the fraudulent checks, the affidavit said.

The status of the Washington case was not immediately clear. Snohomish County’s online court records are behind a pay wall and a prosecutor handling the matter did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday.

Keith Kinnaird can be reached by email at kkinnaird@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow him on Twitter @KeithDailyBee.