Woman charged with stealing more than $100,000 from Taney County law firm where she worked

A Taney County woman has been charged with stealing more than $100,000 from her employer in Taney County.

Krystal Snow, 25 of Forsyth, was charged earlier this month with stealing nearly $185,000 from her employer, Garrett Law Firm located in Hollister, over a period of roughly three years, beginning in 2019.

According to a probable cause statement in the case, Snow was in charge of depositing payments into the firm's bank account at Commerce Bank in Branson during her entire time with the firm. From 2019 to 2022, roughly $295,000 should have been deposited into the firm's account. But after an internal audit, it was discovered only $111,000 ever made it to the firm's accounts, and Snow allegedly pocketed the rest, putting it into her own accounts, according to court documents.

Snow was allegedly only depositing the checks at the bank, and none of the cash. She initially did pay back some of the money she had taken, according to court documents, but eventually stopped.

After the owner of the firm Josh Garrett became aware of the alleged stealing, he fired Snow in February of this year and during an exit interview Snow admitted to stealing $500, but said she had planned to pay it back, according to court documents.

However, Garrett did not find out the depth of how much Snow had taken until the person he hired to fill Snow's role found bank statements for Snow's personal accounts stating that the average monthly deposit year-to-date had been over $17,000; Snow only had a salary of $30,000, according to court documents.

More:All 6 Greene County circuit court judges will be replaced. What's the impact?

Garrett Law Firm released a statement condemning Snow's actions and reassuring their clients that they would be unaffected by what was going on.

"We have cooperated fully with the Hollister Police Department and the prosecutor’s office and have asked them to seek the maximum allowable sentence," the statement said. "No clients have been affected by her theft as the funds were replenished by Mr. Garrett, and despite this person’s attempts to jeopardize the standing of our firm in the community, our representation for our clients remains as strong as ever."

Garrett Law Firm also said they may be pursuing a civil case again Snow, as well.

The criminal investigation began in March of this year, and Snow was arrested and charged with one count of stealing over $25,000 earlier this month. She was being held with a $100,000 bond, which was posted and she is out on bond.

She has no lawyer listed as representing her as of Tuesday and has 30 days to find representation. If convicted of the stealing charge, Snow would face up to 10 years in prison.

Jordan Meier covers public safety for the Springfield News-Leader. Contact her at jmeier@news-leader.com, or on Twitter @Jordan_Meier644.