ROCKLAND, Maine — A former bookkeeper who was convicted in 2007 of embezzling $160,000 from a Rockland law firm is free on bail after being arrested Tuesday for failing to pay restitution.
Billie Jean Grotton-Roberson, 34, was arrested Tuesday at the Knox County Courthouse when she appeared for a small claims case. A warrant for her arrest had been issued in July 2013 when she failed to appear for a court hearing in Rockland for failing to keep up with restitution payments.
The woman was sentenced in 2007 to six years in prison with all but three years suspended for theft. She also was placed on probation for three years and ordered to repay the $160,000.
Grotton-Roberson had worked as a bookkeeper at the Strout & Payson law firm from 1999 to May 2005.
She was arrested in Texas in July 2005, where she was working at a law firm in Round Rock. The funds were discovered missing after a replacement bookkeeper found discrepancies in the accounts.
The state had difficulty locating Grotton-Roberson during the past year because she had been using several aliases. Her last known address was in Windsor.
She was released Wednesday night on $1,000 cash bail. She will need to appear in court at some point to explain why she has not been paying restitution and to determine whether she will face more jail time.