FARGO--A Fargo woman is accused of faking college classes and grades to get her employer, Butler Machinery, to reimburse her for tuition as part of a two-year, $11,000-plus embezzlement scheme, according to prosecutors.
Several employees at Butler Machinery contacted Fargo police Feb. 11 about an employee theft, according to court documents filed Tuesday in Cass County District Court.
The Butler workers told police they thought Stephanie Lynn Muxfeldt was responsible for $1,615 worth of theft after they discovered she inflated her college grades to qualify for reimbursement, and also created fake classes.
ADVERTISEMENT
Muxfeldt, of Fargo, resigned when she was confronted with their discoveries, the employees told police. They found she had forged a human resources employee's initials to approve tuition payments to the University of Mary.
Since then, court documents say, employees discovered Muxfeldt allegedly stole much more than $1,615 from the company, including $9,650 in unauthorized charges to herself and another $443 in cash raised for United Way by her fellow employees.
Employees said they reported the thefts because they were worried Muxfeldt, who had access to all of Butler's employee records, would exploit them for her own personal use--or go on to be hired by another company that didn't know her history, document say.
Police investigators determined that, overall, Muxfeldt stole $11,708, including gift cards and employee awards, court documents say.
She was charged with one count of theft, a Class B felony.
Butler Machinery officials could not be reached for comment.
A phone listing for Muxfeldt could not be found.
Her first court appearance is set for June 9.
ADVERTISEMENT
