Teller gets probation
for plundering accounts

A former Central Pacific Bank teller was sentenced to five years' probation for stealing $105,000 from two customers' accounts and depositing the funds into her personal accounts.

Anne Li, 28, of Palolo, apologized in court yesterday before Circuit Judge Dexter Del Rosario, who agreed to follow the plea agreement she had reached earlier with the state.

Li pleaded guilty in January to first-degree theft, second-degree forgery and money laundering stemming from two transactions last April.

The state, under the plea agreement, had recommended probation over prison because she had made full restitution prior to sentencing, said Deputy Prosecutor Chris Van Marter.

But Li could not move for a deferral of her plea, which could have enabled her to remove the conviction from her record.

"The amount of theft was significant enough that we required she actually have a (felony) conviction on her record," Van Marter said.

The state pursued the case not only because it was important that the victims be repaid, but to deter others who might contemplate similar behavior, he said.

Li was accused of withdrawing $5,000 from a customer's account last April and depositing it into her account. A week later she withdrew $105,000 from another customer's account and deposited $5,000 into the first customer's account. The remaining $100,000 went into her account the next day.

The bank was alerted when the first customer noticed the unauthorized transaction and notified the bank.