The owner of Orange-based Web designer Sistonia Corp. is facing charges for an alleged role in a check-kiting scheme that defrauded a Midland, Mich., bank out of $60,000, according to officials there.
Michigan police said Sistonia co-founder Candice Sherman, 32, has changed her name to hide from authorities and disassociate from a past criminal conviction under the name Sandra Maybee. They have charged Sherman with four felony counts of “publishing a forged or altered document,” which, if proved, carry a maximum 14-year sentence.
Sherman called the accusations a “crazy” case of mistaken identity and harassment. She said prosecutors are using the accusations to pressure her into helping them find the real Sandra Maybee, whom she said is the mother of an employee.
“It’s a long story, but I can tell you they have the wrong person,” Sherman said. “This is a case of small-town politics.”
The charges,filed against Maybee, also known as Candice Sherman and C.S. Sherman,are law enforcement accusations and have not gone before a jury or judge.
Authorities say Maybee was convicted a few years ago of embezzling from her former employer, Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Midland County. According to Midland County assistant prosecutor Geoffrey Rettig, Maybee was released from felony probation last summer, moved to Orange County, took the name Candice Sherman and launched Sistonia’s local operation.
Rettig said Sherman, through her attorney, has agreed to surrender herself in Michigan on May 31. Sherman said she has no plans to do so.
Sherman said she has filed a complaint with the Michigan state Bar and a legal request to prohibit further contacts from Rettig. Those filings could not be immediately confirmed.
The charges, Sherman said, are retaliation for her refusal to cooperate in the investigation into Sandra Maybee. She said she has not cooperated with the probe because she wants to shield Sistonia employee Gina Maybee from any fallout from legal troubles facing her mother, Sandra Maybee.
“We don’t do anything illegal, but we do what we can to protect our employees,” Sherman said.
But Midland prosecutors insist Sandra Maybee and Sherman are the same person.
“This investigation has been pursued as it should have been, and I’m very confident that we’ll be able to bring this to an appropriate resolution,” said Norm Donker, Midland County prosecuting attorney. “There has been absolutely no harassment. Mr. Rettig is a veteran prosecutor who’s well thought of in this office.”
Sistonia spokesman Matt Cunningham said he’s sure the case will vindicate his employer.
“It’s vendetta politics in a small town, and it’s spilling over into our business,” he said. “They’re trying to club us into doing what they want.”
Sherman, who said she is from Michigan, co-founded Sistonia with her 27-year-old sister, Tonya Pope, six years ago.
Sistonia boasts a client roster that ranges from some of the largest auto manufacturers to some of the youngest dot-com customers. One of its most high-profile local customers is Churm Publishing, which operates several area magazines, including OC Metro and OC Family.
Coincidentally, the Michigan allegations come on the heels of similar charges against Pixelon Corp. founder David Stanley, who used the name Michael Fenne to evade a Virginia conviction for cheating members of his father’s church out of $1.25 million. n
