Duhon faces more charges

A 60-year-old Morgan City woman, who was charged July 29 with theft of more than $1.2 million from her former employer, was arrested Friday for stealing an additional $221,000 from the company, according to a Morgan City police news release.
Karen D. Duhon, 60, of Sixth Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 1:54 p.m. Friday for 28 counts of theft totaling $221,807.01. On July 29, 2014, Duhon was charged on eight counts of felony theft totaling $1.233 million.
Morgan City police detectives arrested Duhon on warrants charging her with 28 counts of theft of over $221,801.01 between July 2011 until November 2013, the release said. Duhon is accused of opening four credit card accounts and using funds from accounts belonging to a member and owner of Capital Managements Consultants Inc., police said.
The warrants were secured during a continuing investigation, which was started by the Morgan City Police Department, after a complaint was filed on March 25, 2014, into the theft of funds from several accounts belonging to Capital Management Consultants Inc., police said.
Duhon, who turned herself in to Morgan City police detectives, was booked and released after posting $150,000 bail, police said. The investigation is continuing and more arrests are possible, police said.
On July 24, 2014, Donna Sue Peveto, 58, of Houma, was charged on seven counts for theft more than $1,500 totaling $633,700 from Capital Management Consultants. The company’s controller James Scott Tucker, CPA, died in January 2014.
Morgan City Police spokesman Capt. James Blair said the theft investigation is continuing. If more charges or suspects in the case are identified, police will pursue those leads, Blair said.
Duhon and Tucker are accused of working together to steal money from the company, Capital Management Consultants spokesman Marwan Mohey-El-Dien said.
Peveto, who worked as a bookkeeper assistant and assistant to management, found out about the theft at which time Tucker and Duhon started paying Peveto to “keep her quiet,” Mohey-El-Dien said.
On Tuesday, the owners of Capital Management Consultants filed a civil suit in the 16th Judicial District Court against Duhon, Peveto, Tucker’s estate and others who are alleged to have benefited from theft of potentially up to $30 million, possibly dating as far back as the 1980s, Mohey-El-Dien said.
Duhon worked as a bookkeeper for the company, but Tucker, without any authorization of the company, made himself president and Duhon secretary, Mohey-El-Dien said. Tucker was employed as the company’s controller CPA, Mohey-El-Dien said.
Mohey-El-Dien provided The Daily Review with a forensic review of the Capital Management Consultants Inc. accounting records dated Dec. 19, 2014, performed by Wright, Moore, DeHart, Dupuis & Hutchinson LLC in Lafayette.
Capital Management Consultants Inc. is a private investment holdings company that owns multiple companies, Mohey-El-Dien said.
A total of 4,000 documents have been filed in district court, and company officials are getting ready to file another 8,000 documents, he said.
According to the forensic review, Tucker was found dead in his home Jan. 22, 2014. ln response, the stockholders began the process of picking up his duties with regard to the company’s financial activities, the documents stated.
Interviews with employees indicated that at some point Duhon and Tucker became involved in a romantic relationship, according to the documents. Duhon worked directly under and with Tucker until his death, the documents stated.
The Daily Review called Duhon this morning at her residence in Morgan City for comment on the charges and suit against her. Duhon said she would have to speak to her attorney to see if she could comment. As of press time, Duhon had not called The Daily Review back.
The Daily Review also called the phone number listed for Peveto under a Morgan City address, but the number was disconnected. According to court records, Peveto lists an address in the 5400 block of West Park Avenue in Houma. No other phone number was located for Peveto.