Charlotte man who stole $4 million from employer gets 4 years, 3 months in prison

A Charlotte man was sentenced to four years and three months in prison this week for stealing about $4 million from his employer, Mint Hill-based Andersen Heating & Cooling.

Nathan Thomas Mroz, 40, was the company’s chief finance officer. He spent the stolen money on vacations to Disneyland and Europe, luxury vehicles, private school tuition, diamond jewelry valued at $40,000 and a $115,000 home for his nanny, Acting U.S. Attorney Jill Westmoreland Rose said.

U.S. District Judge Robert Conrad also ordered Mroz to serve two years of supervised release once his prison sentence ends and to pay about $4 million in restitution.

In handing down the sentence, Conrad said Mroz “abused his position of trust with respect to his controller and CFO functions.” Pulling off the scheme required “hundreds of acts of fraud and deceit,” the judge said.

In April 2014, Mroz pleaded guilty to mail fraud in connection with the scheme.

According to court documents, from 2005 to 2013, Mroz worked for the company as financial controller and later as CFO and had access to the company’s funds, books and records.

Over those years, court records show, Mroz exploited his position to create fake accounts payable invoices and to generate corresponding payments, which Mroz directed to himself or mailed to various credit cards he maintained.

To cover up his scheme, Mroz fraudulently categorized the bogus company payments as legitimate business expenses in the company’s books and records, according to court documents.

This story was originally published May 7, 2015 at 9:14 AM with the headline "Charlotte man who stole $4 million from employer gets 4 years, 3 months in prison."