Sentencing Postponed of Bookkeeper that Embezzled $545K from La Jolla Area Restaurant

Sentencing was postponed Wednesday until Aug. 21 for a former bookkeeper who embezzled more than $545,000 from the Leucadia Pizzeria chain.

Susan Dawn Seibert, 49, pleaded guilty last month to one count each of embezzlement and forgery and admitted an allegation that she took more than $500,000 from her employer.

Judge David Berry is scheduled to sentence the defendant to four years in prison.

Authorities said Seibert forged checks to herself during her four years with the company. The defendant quit her job last year when she learned that the restaurant planned to audit the books, according to Deputy District Attorney Anna Winn.

The audit showed that Seibert had written 172 checks to herself from the Leucadia Pizzeria account, Winn said, adding that the checks were forged with an owner's signature.

Winn said Seibert covered up the embezzlement by listing legitimate vendors as the recipients of the checks.

The prosecutor said Seibert told the Leucadia Pizzeria owners that she took the money to pay back a previous employer who had sued her for embezzlement.

Leucadia Pizzeria has stores in Encinitas, the La Jolla area and Rancho Santa Fe.