Nicole Ann Lopez, or Nikki Lopez, the owner of Sora and Company, entered a guilty plea in federal court on March 14 for stealing more than $600,000 from M&D Construction, where she was formerly employed as a bookkeeper.
In a plea agreement, she plead guilty to a charge of wire fraud and in exchange, the U.S. Attorney’s Office dropped the other 13 charges.
Sora owner charged with federal wire fraud, sued in civil court
Her sentencing hearing is set for June 9 and she faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release.
Lopez was released pending further proceedings, according to the court.
The government argued in court documents that M&D Construction hired Lopez as a bookkeeper in 2013.
She had access to to the company’s business bank accounts and between 2017 and 2020, Lopez charged more than $600,000 on her personal credit card accounts for mostly consumer shopping and travel, according to court documents.
To pay her personal credit card expenses, Lopez directed approximately $611,000 in 72 payments from M&D’s business account into her personal accounts without the company’s authorization, according to court documents.
The embezzlement was discovered, according to court documents, when she purchased Sora and resigned from M&D.
The construction company hired a new accountant to replace Lopez and discovered that more than $600,000 was missing, according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
According to the plea agreement, the prosecution will pursue restitution of at least $611,665.22, but the final figure will be determined by the court at the time of sentencing after both parties and any victims have an opportunity to be heard.
Lopez has also been sued civilly in District Court by M&D Construction for the embezzlement.
Lopez has not returned The Electric’s question this week on the status of the downtown store, but the space has been vacated.
