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OAG files 35 charges against ex-bank employee
The Office of the Attorney General has filed 35 criminal charges against Joanna Mendiola Torres, a former Bank of Guam employee who allegedly stole $18,145 from the bank account of her sister while the sister was undergoing medical treatment off island.
Chief Prosecutor Brian Flaherty filed an information yesterday charging the 42-year-old Torres with one count of theft and 34 counts of forgery.
According to court papers, Torres stole a total of $18,145 from Jerilyn Torres Teregeyo between May 23, 2014, and July 25, 2014.
Flaherty said the suspect, while employed with Bank of Guam, forged Teregeyo’s signature 34 times in a Bank of Guam’s savings withdrawal form to steal the money from the victim’s saving account.
Torres appeared with her counsel, assistant public defender Benjamin Petersburg, at the preliminary hearing yesterday afternoon. Petersburg told the court that Torres waives her right to a preliminary hearing.
Superior Court Associate Judge Joseph N. Camacho ordered Torres to appear at the arraignment on Monday, Oct. 6.
Police detective Andrew S. Taimanao stated in his report that Koban Unit police officers were dispatched to the Bank of Guam last Sept. 15 in response to a theft case.
Taimanao said the investigation showed that a bank customer called the bank and reported that money was missing from his wife’s bank account.
The bank’s internal investigation discovered that their then-employee Torres stole the victim’s money by forging her signature several times.
The bank terminated Torres on Sept. 12 due to the findings.
The bank returned to the victim’s husband the entire missing amount.
