A Georgia woman has been arrested in connection with a 2023 bank-fraud case that police say cost the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce and its former executive director more than $500,000.
The arrest was reported by Colorado Hometown Weekly, which said the woman was arrested Monday in connection with the chamber scam.
A Boulder Daily aggregation of the Daily Camera report said police believe the woman accepted $286,700 as part of the scam and texted with other suspects about the stolen money.
The case traces back to a bank-fraud incident the Lafayette Chamber disclosed publicly in January 2024. At the time, chamber leaders said the breach was isolated to the organization’s business bank account and did not expose member information.
The Scam Hit The Chamber’s Business Bank Account
Woman arrested in Lafayette Chamber of Commerce scam stole $286k, police say pic.twitter.com/Vzc57mmHxa
— Daily Camera (@dailycamera) June 18, 2026
When the chamber first disclosed the fraud, BizWest reported that chamber president Chase Ryant described the incident as a “bank scam” carried out by professionals.
Ryant said the account breach did not affect chamber members and was isolated to the business bank account. The chamber also said its board contacted authorities, began reviewing internal policies and procedures, and worked with law enforcement during the investigation.
That early disclosure did not name suspects or reveal the amount taken. The newer arrest report put the alleged amount accepted by the Georgia woman at $286,700 and said the broader scam cost the chamber and its former executive director more than $500,000.
The Arrest Came After A Long Investigation
The reported arrest adds a new piece to a case that had been under investigation since the chamber disclosed the fraud publicly.
Boulder Daily’s aggregation of the Daily Camera report said the scam cost the Lafayette Chamber and its former executive director more than $500,000, while the U.S. Treasury was allegedly hit for about $343,000. Police said the Georgia woman accepted $286,700 as part of the scam.
The Original Warning Focused On Bank Spoofing
After the fraud became public, the Lafayette Chamber used the incident to warn member businesses about bank-spoofing tactics.
BizWest reported that the chamber’s warning told businesses not to rely on caller ID, because scammers can make a call appear to come from a real bank or financial institution. The chamber also warned members not to share PINs, passwords, or one-time access codes.
The chamber’s 2024 warning also said bank employees will not ask customers to send money to anyone, including themselves, to “reverse a transfer,” “receive a refund,” or fix a supposed account problem.
Small Organizations Need A Callback Rule Before Money Moves
A chamber, nonprofit, school, municipality, church, or small business can stop a suspicious bank call before anyone opens online banking. The person who receives the call should hang up and contact the bank through a verified number from the bank’s website, business debit card, treasury-management portal, or prior account documents.
Large transfers should also require a second person inside the organization to approve the action through a separate channel. That means no transfer, wire, account login, remote-access session, password reset, or one-time code should move forward only because a caller says the account is under attack.
If a caller has already gained remote access or talked someone through online banking, the organization should call the bank’s fraud department immediately, ask whether transfers can be stopped or recalled, preserve call logs and screenshots, and file a police report while transaction details are still fresh.
The Lafayette Chamber said in 2024 that the incident would not affect regular business operations or events. The organization also said it reviewed internal safeguards to prevent a similar incident from happening again.