A woman who held a key position with the Greater Mount Airy Chamber of Commerce has been charged with felonious embezzlement from a previous employer — a development that “shocked” the chamber staff.
“Obviously, when she was arrested we let her go,” John Pynakker, the organization’s president and CEO, said Friday regarding Ashleigh Caroline Billings, who recently was hired as chamber executive assistant.
“She had only been here a month,” Pynakker added.
“We were shocked,” the chamber official said of the reaction by him and other staff members to the executive assistant’s arrest.
Billings, 40, of 255 Gwynwood Drive, was taken into custody Monday at her home on a charge of felony embezzlement of $100,000 or more, in which LC Contracting LLC of Mount Airy is the alleged victim.
Just before joining the chamber, she served as manager of that company, which is part of the Carport Central and American Building Network operation.
However, the sum Billings is said to have embezzled from LC Contracting LLC is thought to greatly exceed $100,000.
“At this point, we feel it is probably around or about $300,000,” Mount Airy Police Chief Dale Watson said Friday.
The city police Detective Division had been investigating Billings’ actions at LC Contracting LLC since receiving a report in November about suspected wrongdoing there on her part.
“What it was was company checks,” the police chief said of the vehicle by which the funds went missing. “We just know she was in some type of fiduciary capacity.”
No explanation has come to light as to why Billings took the money as charged, according to the police chief.
The alleged embezzlement covers a period from January 2022 to March of this year, Watson said. The investigation was quite extensive, requiring the checking of many records.
After being arrested at her residence on Monday, records at the Surry County Jail indicate Billings was held in that facility for about one day before being released under a $75,000 bond.
She is facing a May 6 appearance in Surry District Court.
Chamber was unaware
Ashleigh Billings had become the chamber’s executive assistant to some degree of fanfare, with an April 2 posting on its Facebook page rejoicing over the latest addition to the staff.
“We are thrilled to have Ashleigh’s experience and enthusiasm as our executive assistant,” it reads.
The chamber Facebook posting further advises that Billings’ role there would include attending various chamber events and assisting with the needs of its members, who cover a wide swath of the local business community.
Pynakker was quick to provide an assurance Friday that Billings’ presence there for about a month resulted in no questionable actions involving funds.
“She was never responsible for anything financial with us,” he said.
A thorough check of the chamber’s records to confirm that occurred in conjunction with Billings’ termination, according to Pynakker.
Meanwhile, there was no indication there had been any problems with her previous employer during the application process of the chamber.
“We did our due diligence before we hired her,” Pynakker said.
“No one had anything bad to say about her.”
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