Eagan man sentenced for stealing from mortgage firm

Last update: July 3, 2009 - 11:51 PM

An Eagan man faces more than eight years in prison for stealing from the Burnsville mortgage company where he worked.

Michael R. Sauve, 43, was sentenced Thursday to 98 months, double the time called for by Minnesota sentencing guidelines.

Sauve embezzled more than $165,000 over several years from Bankers Mortgage, according to Dakota County District Court documents. He pleaded guilty in May to four counts of theft and one count of theft by swindle, all felonies.

Sauve had worked as a controller for the company from 2002 until it merged with Bell Mortgage in 2008 and he was not hired to stay on, according to court documents. He was in charge of payroll, human resources and bookkeeping, among other duties.

Sauve gave himself extra paychecks periodically and made fraudulent payments to his 401(k) loan and contribution accounts, court documents said.

Sauve had previously been convicted, in 2001, of stealing more than $100,000 from an Eagan employer in 1998 and 1999.

SARAH LEMAGIE