Chapter 4 - The Fraud Uncovered
With temporary custody secured, I turned my attention to saving the land my father had passed down to me. Ryan Vance had attempted to use Sarah’s access to my business records to take control of our 40-acre facility for a suburban commercial development.
Working alongside a forensic accountant, David and I spent two weeks auditing five years of company ledgers. What we found was bigger than a simple affair.
Ryan Vance wasn't just pursuing Sarah; he had been using her to siphon money from several small businesses in Canadian County. Sarah had unknowingly signed legal documents that placed her name at the center of an illegal land-acquisition scheme.
One afternoon, my phone rang. It was Detective Marcus Vance (no relation to Ryan), the officer who had taken the initial report.
"Grant, we executed a search warrant on Ryan Vance’s development firm this morning," Detective Vance told me. "We found the original power of attorney document. The signature on it wasn't just forged—it was traced from an old lease agreement. Furthermore, we found evidence that Sarah was funneling funds into an offshore account that Ryan controlled exclusively."
"Does Sarah know?" I asked.
"She’s finding out right now," Vance replied. "When federal investigators showed up at his office, Ryan tried to throw Sarah under the bus, claiming she acted alone and embezzled the money herself."
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That evening, Sarah called my attorney in hysterics. Ryan had cut off her credit cards, locked her out of the apartment he rented for her, and hired his own criminal defense team to distance himself from her.
She had given up her family, her children, and her integrity for a man who viewed her as nothing more than a scapegoat.
