A Fort Worth human resources director is heading to prison for 15 years after admitting she quietly siphoned off nearly $310,000 from her employer over more than two years, all while running the company’s HR department. The case, announced by county prosecutors, has turned heads locally for the scale and length of the internal theft.
In a post on X, the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office said Stacia McGrew pleaded guilty to theft of property valued at $300,000 or more and was sentenced to 15 years. According to the office’s attached transcript, McGrew diverted company funds into bank accounts she controlled, creating accounts under roughly 20 real and fictitious employees and siphoning nearly $310,000 over more than two years. Assistant District Attorneys Lori Varnell and Madison Littlefield prosecuted the case, and investigator Mark Taylor is listed as the lead investigator in the materials the DA posted.
Thank you to the Fort Worth Police Department for your work on this case and for keeping our community safe. pic.twitter.com/Hp6WNSxk2t
— Tarrant County DA (@TarrantCountyDA) December 18, 2025
How Prosecutors Say the Scheme Worked
Prosecutors say McGrew set up multiple bank accounts, some tied to actual employees and others using fabricated names, then routed employer disbursements into accounts she controlled so she could withdraw or transfer funds. That pattern of “ghost” and misdirected payroll or disbursement activity, officials say, allowed repeated siphoning before the scheme was uncovered. Investigators told the court the conduct continued for more than two years while McGrew held HR access that let her create and manage those accounts.
Sentence, Prosecution and Legal Note
McGrew pleaded guilty to theft of property valued at $300,000 or more and received a 15-year prison term. Under Texas law, theft of property valued at $300,000 or more is punishable as a first degree felony, with a statutory punishment range that can run from five to 99 years in prison. See the Texas Penal Code for the statutory classifications and penalty ranges.
Local Context
Tarrant County courts have handed down similarly tough sentences in other large scale fraud and embezzlement cases. For example, a contractor who admitted stealing more than $300,000 was sentenced to 15 years, as reported by CBS DFW. A separate Fort Worth bookkeeper convicted of embezzling more than $1 million also drew a lengthy sentence, according to the Fort Worth Business Press…