With residents in attendance, former longtime local businesswoman Lana Casey, 63, of Hughson, pleaded “no contest” to a series of felony counts in Stanislaus County Superior Court on May 19.
The former owner of Lana’s Spur of the Moment shop in Oakdale was indicted last year on 79 counts of grand theft, money laundering and tax evasion in what Stanislaus County District Attorney Jeff Laguero described as a $1.4 million embezzlement scheme, the largest white-collar criminal indictment ever sought by the office.
Casey also admitted an aggravated white collar crime enhancement that her crimes involved planning and sophistication.
She will be sentenced on June 13, 2025 to serve 10 years and four months prison term. After sentencing, she will be transported to San Joaquin County where she is facing additional charges related to embezzlement and theft.
In September 2024, Casey was indicted by a Stanislaus County Grand Jury of 79 felony counts and arrested.
The conviction relates to her fraudulently stealing approximately $214,456 from non-profit organizations serving the Oak Valley District Hospital in Oakdale. Casey became a signer of the checking accounts of the charitable foundations and proceeded to draft herself and others checks from those accounts.
Authorities say that after taking money from the non-profits, Casey stole money from trusts associated with Carolyn W. Reynolds in San Joaquin County. A forensic audit conducted by the California Franchise Tax Board determined that Casey had $1.453 million in unreported income between the years 2018 and 2021 and determined that approximately $1.211 million of that income was embezzled.
Casey had not filed any state income tax returns for the years 2018 through 2021. Under state and federal law, individuals must pay taxes on earnings whether lawfully or unlawfully obtained.
“Nonprofit organizations are often the target of fraud and theft,” noted Laugero. “This case is an unfortunate reminder that there are people who obtain a position of trust within an organization for the purpose of stealing the precious donations made by a generous community. To embezzle these funds for personal gain is the ultimate betrayal of that position of trust, and the severity of the consequences in this case demonstrates the seriousness of this crime.”
The case against Casey was investigated by the Stanislaus County District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation, Oakdale Police, California Franchise Tax Board and the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Bureau of Investigation.
Deputy District Attorney Travis Colby prosecuted this case on behalf of the People.
