Grigg pleads guilty in embezzlement case
Published 6:41 pm Wednesday, September 12, 2012
Masonic lodge treasurer sentenced to 5-6 months in jail
After being accused of embezzling $89,000 from the Horse Creek Masonic Lodge in Columbus, Tony Lyn Grigg pled guilty last week to charges of obtaining property under false pretenses, embezzlement and corporate malfeasance, all felonies.
Grigg, who was 54 at the time of his arrest, was sentenced by Judge Athena Brooks on Sept. 5 during Polk County District Court to serve five to six months at the Polk County Jail, with 78 days of credit for time served.
Grigg also received five other sentences of five to six months in jail, which were all suspended on the condition he serve 24 months supervised probation for each sentence.
Grigg, of #10 Fox Meadows Lane, Columbus, was originally charged with seven counts of obtaining property by false pretenses, seven counts of embezzlement and seven counts of corporate malfeasance. He was arrested on June 20 following a lengthy investigation by the Columbus Police Department and a certified public accountant (CPA).
Grigg admitted to committing the crimes while he served as treasurer of the Masonic Lodge, located across from the Polk County Courthouse on Courthouse Street in downtown Columbus.
The money was taken over a span from 2006 until his arrest this year, according to the Columbus Police Department. The N.C. Highway Patrol arrested Grigg during a traffic stop.
The masonic lodge hired retired N.C. State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) CPA R. Lawrence Young to assist in the investigation.