There’s an old saying in the boat building business: If you want to wind up with a $1 million dollar boat yard, start with $2 million. Of course another way to find your boat yard battling headwinds would be to suspect your bookkeeper’s been siphoning $1000 bills from your strongbox.
Arrested and arraigned in Maine last week was former Brooklin Boat Yard bookkeeper Steven Nygren who now stands charged with allegedly misappropriating $750,000 from the boat yard and transferring it to an as-yet unnamed accomplice out of state.
Given the scene of the crime, this plunder could take on Brink’s robbery proportions. Brooklin looms rather large when it comes to idyllic Maine settings. Situated on the Benjamin River, overlooking Jericho Bay, Brooklin is home to Wooden Boat Magazine as well as boat builders, artists, writers, musicians, and potters. It’s known for its hay crop and lobsters and once boasted as many of 1,002 inhabitants. Today fewer than 850 people make up the town.
If the charges stick and Nygren is found guilty of two Class B felonies, unauthorized taking and forgery, Maine law suggests a prison term of up to 10 years and a fine of up to $20,000 for each offense.
While the wheels of justice are known to grind slowly but exceedingly fine, we sincerely wish Brooklin Boat Yard owners Godspeed in recovering their stolen cash.