Former Secretary Sentenced to 10 Years for Stealing $516K from Downers Grove Law Firm

A Woodridge woman was sentenced Monday to 10 years in prison for where she worked as a secretary, according to the DuPage County State's Attorney's Office.

Mary Marra, 44, of the 3000 block of 63rd Street, pleaded guilty in June to two counts of theft in excess of $100,000 and one count of continuing a financial crimes enterprise—all Class 1 felonies.

Beginning in December 2003, Marra started embezzling money from the law firm through a number of different schemes she hid for more than four years, according to a press release. In all, she stole a total of $516,226.24.

The methods of Marra’s thefts included writing herself unauthorized checks from bank accounts controlled by the law firm and forging her employer’s signature on other checks written out to her. She also wrote herself checks from the estate of one of the law firm’s clients. 

Marra's schemes came to light in February 2008 after the owner of the company, suspecting something was wrong with his books, contacted the . An investigation resulted in charges against Marra, and her sentencing Monday in DuPage County Court.

“Simple greed got the better of Mary Marra,” said DuPage County State's Attorney Robert Berlin in the release. “She was gainfully employed, earning an honest living, by a firm who had placed a great amount of trust in her. She repaid that trust by siphoning more than one half of a million dollars from firm’s bank accounts. Her actions caused a great financial hardship to the firm. That hardship continues today."

Marra will be required to serve 50 percent of her sentence before being eligible for parole, Berlin said. To date she has paid back approximately $157,000.

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