Bangor, Maine: United States Attorney Thomas E. Delahanty II announced that Lynn
M. Bowden, 63, of Bucksport, Maine, was sentenced today in U.S. District Court in Bangor to
97 months in prison and five years of supervised release for embezzlement by a bank employee
and tax fraud. She was also ordered to pay $3,822,166.27 in restitution. The defendant pleaded
guilty to the charges on Feb. 19, 2014.
According to court documents, Bowden was employed by Merrill Merchants Bank
(“Merrill") in May 2004. Chittenden Corporation acquired Merrill in 2007. People’s United
Bank acquired Chittenden Corporation in 2008. Bowden maintained her employment through
these acquisitions. In October 2012, she was working as a wealth management officer managing
over 200 trust and investment management accounts when her embezzlement was discovered.
The investigation revealed that from April 4, 2005 to Sept. 26, 2012, Bowden
embezzled $2,990,429.65 from client accounts that she managed by transferring the funds into
her personal accounts. She used all of the money for herself and family members. Bowden
failed to report this income to the Internal Revenue Service on her tax returns causing a tax loss
of more than $750,000 for the period from 2007 to 2011. On Oct. 26, 2012, the bank
terminated her employment, and ultimately reimbursed customers for their losses.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal
Revenue Service-Criminal Investigations.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, Office of the United States Attorneys
