Woman charged with embezzlement

NORTH CANAAN » A woman was arrested Thursday for allegedly embezzling at least $100,000 from a local rehabilitation center.

Tara Desjardins, 35, of Brownstone Street, Meriden, was charged with first-degree larceny and conspiracy to commit third-degree larceny.The owner of Eden Hill Recovery Retreat for Woman in Canaan contacted police on Feb. 16, 2016, and said that Desjardins, a former employee, had used the company-issued credit card for several years to make unauthorized purchases as well as writing unauthorized checks and improperly spending petty cash, according to an arrest warrant affidavit.

The owner became suspicious when her business continued to lack profits and provided police with Desjardins’ employment history, authorizations within the business, email exchanges and bank and credit card statements, according to the affidavit.

Two search and seizure warrants were issued for the bank accounts of Desjardins and her boyfriend, Lucas Jordan, 29, of Canaan, on Aug. 11, 2016. Jordan was arrested Feb. 13 and charged with thirddegree larceny and conspiracy to commit thirddegree larceny. He is free on $25,000 bail, judicial records show.

The owner of the rehabilitation center believes Desjardins embezzled more than $158,000, police said. A forensic fraud examiner with the Chief State’s Attorney’s Office calculated she embezzled at least $100,000.

Desjardins was held in lieu of $100,000 bail and issued a court date of July 20.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF STATE POLICE Two people — Lucas Jordan, left, and Tara Desjardins, right — were charged with larceny for allegedly embezzling money from a rehabilitation center.