Federal officials announced Thursday that a former employee of a bank in Massachusetts pleaded guilty to stealing more than $180,000 from the bank. The theft took advantage of a rare weakness in the normally very secure world of bank security.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office said Derek Aut pleaded guilty in federal court to stealing money while working as a teller at a bank in Boston. Aut used to make sandwiches at a popular sub shop in Revere. Prosecutors say he stole money by changing the names of bank users on withdrawal slips and moving money between accounts to hide his tracks.
Court records say the victims were an executive who lived in Asia and a Boston resident who is 99 years old. The woman who is almost 100 years old was the first person to report Aut’s theft. The FBI said Aut lost most of the money at the harbor casino.
Leah B. Foley, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Massachusetts, told USA TODAY, “Banks are trusted to protect their customers’ hard-earned savings, and bank tellers put those funds in a special place of trust.” “This defendant took advantage of that trust by picking victims he thought wouldn’t notice the money going missing and then changing their accounts to hide his tracks.” Crimes like this make people less trusting and make it more important to be careful.
It’s getting harder and harder to steal money from banks, like this theft. For some reason, bank robbery isn’t getting caught as often as it used to because it’s so dangerous and doesn’t pay off very well. And experts say that internal bank protections have made thefts by workers very unlikely.
But, while today’s John Dillinger may have moved on to other types of crime, Aut’s theft shows that financial institutions still have holes that can be used to make a lot of money.
Robert McCrie, a professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice and an expert on bank theft, told USA TODAY, “It’s really shocking. It has to say something about the internal controls at the financial institution.” “This case will make a lot of bankers and people who deal with liquid assets think about the internal controls they have in place.”
According to court documents, Aut ran his scheme at the Boston TD Bank office without being caught for a long time, from September 2023 to April 2024. McCrie wrote this down. He said, “It makes you wonder how such a crime could happen over such a long time.” “The dishonest teller is usually caught quickly and fired.”
When asked for response, a TD Bank representative said, “The employee was fired on April 8, 2024, based on our findings and before he was arrested.” We told the police about it and fully helped them with their probe.
Aut admitted that he stole money from a bank employee and used someone else’s name without permission. The 28-year-old could go to federal jail for up to 30 years. Judge William G. Young of the U.S. Senior District Court set the sentencing date for June 16, 2025.
An agent for Aut refused to say anything. The FBI said Aut started gambling a lot after he started taking money. They say he spent about $100,000 at the Encore Boston Harbor Casino.
