Tyler woman indicted for embezzling from her employer

TYLER – A Tyler woman who confessed to writing more than $40,000 in checks to herself from the business that employed her has been indicted by a Smith County grand jury. According to our news partner KETK, an arrest warrant indicated Vicki Melhart, 39, wrote the checks while working for Deerbrook Storage Unit. The 107 checks were made out between October 2, 2019, and April 4, 2020. The owner of the company told police that Melhart’s job had been “renting units, paying various bills, and taking payments.” She was fired when the owner found out that she had been writing the checks and forging his or his son’s signature. In total, the checks added up to $40,125.35. In an interview with police, Melhart said that she had written the checks because she was “not making enough money.” She also asked “to pay the money back to the owner instead of going to jail.” Melhart is being held in the Smith County Jail on a $50,000 bond. Her first court appearance has not yet been scheduled.