Robert Namath Emory, a 54-year-old resident of Lancaster, has admitted guilt in a wire fraud case involving the embezzlement of funds from his employer. Emory was the head of the accounting department at Mar Mac Protective Apparel, a company based in McBee that produces hazardous materials suits.
Investigations revealed that Emory exploited an internal flaw in Mar Mac's invoice system. The system involved attaching a blank physical check to vendor invoices while processing payments electronically. By duplicating invoice amounts and using check numbers internally without submitting them to the bank, Emory managed to write checks to himself or his personal LLC.
Emory pleaded guilty to one count out of a 50-count indictment for issuing a fraudulent check worth $9,583.79 in February 2021. His scheme allowed him to embezzle nearly $5 million. Notably, this is not his first offense; he was convicted of wire fraud back in 2008.
The potential consequences for Emory include up to 20 years in federal prison, a fine reaching $250,000, restitution payments, and three years of supervised release following imprisonment. United States District Judge Mary Geiger Lewis accepted his guilty plea and will determine sentencing after reviewing a report from the U.S. Probation Office.
The FBI Columbia Field Office and Chesterfield County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation into this case. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Winston Holliday and Scott Matthews are handling prosecution duties.