Flowery Branch man sentenced for stealing over $1.2M from Mars Wrigley in fraud case

FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. - A Flowery Branch man faces three years in prison for stealing more than a million dollars from his employer.

Michael Mayfield, 55, was an environmental manager at the Mars Wrigley factory in town and oversaw its health, safety, and environmental and recycling programs.

According to prosecutors, Mayfield diverted checks sent to Mars Wrigley for recycling waste to his own company, WWJ Recycling.

Court documents showed Mayfield engaged in the scheme from as early as December 2016 to sometime in 2022.

Along with that plan, Mayfield also reportedly worked with a co-conspirator to create false invoices from a supplier to Mars Wrigley. The co-conspirator would then send the invoiced items - which included football supplies for the Flowery Branch football team, tickets to University of Georgia football games, and gift cards - to Mayfield. The false invoices totaled over $199,000.

Combining the two schemes, Mayfield and the co-conspirator created more than $750,000 worth of invoices from WWJ Recycling that the co-conspirator then submitted to Mars Wrigley for payment. 

In all, prosecutors say Mayfield defrauded over $1.2 million from the company.

"Mayfield devised a false invoicing scheme to betray and defraud his employer of more than $1 million," said U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Buchanan. "This sentencing sends a clear message to others that our office is committed to working with our law enforcement partners to hold criminals accountable for stealing from employers who trust them."

After pleading guilty, a judge sentenced Mayfield to three years in prison and three years of supervised release.

He'll also have to pay more than $1.2 million in restitution.