Tina M. Cabudoy, shown here in a photo taken by the San Mateo County Sheriff's Office, where she has also faced charges, was arrested Oct. 30 by the Santa Rosa Police Department on charges of embezzlement.
Tina M. Cabudoy, former business manager for Amaturo Sonoma Media Group, LLC, was arrested Oct. 30 by Santa Rosa Police on embezzlement charges. The charges are related to Cabudoy’s former position at ASMG, which she held from 2023 to March 2024.
Amaturo Sonoma Media Group (ASMG), LLC is the Santa Rosa-based publisher of NorthBay biz, as well as owner of local radio stations KZST, KSRO, KFGY, KVRV, KHTH, KWVF, 99.1 The Bull, Oldies 107.9 and Waterdrop Digital.
In a statement from ASMG ownership, the company expressed gratitude toward the Santa Rosa Police Department and the California Attorney General’s Office for their “hard work and diligence” in “bringing Ms. Cabudoy to justice.”
“All businesses must operate on a level of trust with their employees, and when that trust is breached by theft, the consequences can be significant, and for some businesses, they can be economically devastating,” the statement continued. ”We are not the first local business to be victimized in this way, and we hope the outcome of this matter will send a message that such behavior is not tolerated in Sonoma County.”
Suspicions about potential embezzlement by Cabudoy arose last April and SRPD detectives initiated a detailed investigation into ASMG finances, completing an audit of expenses by Cabudoy, who had access to company checks and credit cards. “After serving several search warrants at involved financial institutions and analyzing the records, detectives determined the suspect spent over $160,000 in unauthorized transactions,” according to an Oct. 30 press release from the Santa Rosa Police Department. “Those transactions included everything from household Amazon purchases, personal travel, lavish hotel stays, an extravagant birthday party for herself, and passing checks to herself.”
During the course of the months-long investigation, Cabudoy moved from Santa Rosa to San Jose, “further complicating investigative follow up and surveillances,” said the release.
According to the SRPD, payment card industry (PCI) detectives traveled to Cabudoy’s residence on Jerilyn Drive in San Jose on Oct. 30 and served a search warrant to the suspect. “There they arrested 50-year-old Tina Cabudoy. Additional financial paperwork was located and seized from the residence as evidence.”
Throughout the investigation, officers had already been familiar with a separate warrant arrest of Cabudoy stemming from a San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office investigation, which found Cabudoy charged with embezzling over $300,000 from a Silicon Valley tech firm, where she’d previously been employed. Criminal and judicial proceedings for that investigation are still ongoing.
Cabudoy is being held in the Sonoma County Jail on $100,000 bail and is due in court on Nov. 1.
For questions or comments, please contact ksro@mysonomamedia.com
