At the end of a long day, Sabrina, a cashier for a supermarket is counting the paper money. One of the bills falls from the cash register into the bottom of Sabrina’s purse. What elements of embezzlement are present in this situation? Should Sabrina be convicted of embezzlement? Why or why not?

Answer:

Embezzlement is defined as the act of theft or misappropriation of funds placed in the trust of someone,such as funds that belong to an employer.In order to be found guilty of embezzlement,the defendant does not necessarily need to benefit themselves.

Elements to embezzlement are:

• the property must belong to a person other than the accused,such as an employer or principal;
• the property must be converted subsequent to the defendant's original and lawful possession of it
• the defendant must be in a position of trust,so that the property is held by him or her pursuant to some fiduciary duty
• the defendant must have an intent to defraud the owner at the time of the conversion.

Sabrina should be convicted of embezzlement because to prove embezzlement the following is required;

• the alleged embezzler had a fiduciary obligation to the victim
• the defendant acquired the money or property at issue via his or her fiduciary relationship with the victim
• the defendant took ownership of the property that was transferred or stolen
• the defendant intentionally took the property at issue.

The principal or employer must be the owner of the property embezzled by an agent or employee at the time the offense is committed.Under many statutes,the ownership requirement is expressed as the property of another.It is sufficient if any person,other than the defendant,owns the property and it does not matter who has title to it or that it is owned by more than one person.