Kyle Man Pleads Guilty in $3.2 Million Corporate Embezzlement Case

AUSTIN, Texas - A Kyle man pleaded guilty in a federal court in Austin to embezzling more than $3.2 million from his former employer, Austin Freight Systems (AFS), announced U.S. Attorney Justin R. Simmons for the Western District of Texas.

According to court documents, Mitchell David Slentz, 34, was in charge of accounting operations at AFS, overseeing all accounting activities, financial reporting and internal controls, including submitting requests to JP Morgan Chase Bank to make payments to AFS's vendors. Beginning no later than October 2023 and continuing at least until about March 2025, Slentz fraudulently misappropriated money from AFS through 147 payments, and deposited approximately $3,277,937.35 into his personal bank accounts through the use of interstate wire communications.

Using the criminally derived money, Slentz paid $25,000 on July 24, 2024, and $33,887.83 on Sept. 3, 2024, for student loan debt. Additional fraudulent activities were revealed through financial analyses of several of Slentz's accounts. Furthermore, Slentz gambled extensively on an online gambling platform, depositing and/or winning more than $1 million through online gambling.

Slentz was charged via information on May 14 and made his initial appearance in front of U.S. Magistrate Judge Dustin M. Howell on June 8. On June 29, he pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of engaging in monetary transactions with criminally derived proceeds. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

The FBI Austin White Collar Crime Task Force investigated the case.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Joshua Somers is prosecuting the case.

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