Linda Speaks Tribby was a veteran employee of Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), via Wachovia and predecessor banks, with more than 25 years of experience, ultimately working as a business relationship manager developing in Northern Virginia. Unfortunately, prosecutors have charged that from about December 2003 to January 2011, Tribby "sold some customers on a wealth-management account product that she said earned tax-free interest--a product the bank didn't offer--then transferred funds from their accounts into accounts that she controlled," reports Bloomberg.

Somehow Tribby was able to create fake balance statements for the customers and make periodic interest payments. She got away with it for eight years.

An internal investigation uncovered the fraud, and Tribby was arrested at Dulles International Airport in January with more than $30,000 in a tote bag.

It's good that the bank uncovered the theft. But the damage has been severe. Although about $5.5 million has been recovered, more than $8 million remains missing.

It's fair to wonder if better internal procedures could have prevented some of this--or discovered it at an earlier date. How could this have gone on for so long?

Yet, at the same time, we all know a motivated criminal with strong knowledge of internal compliance checks and systems can be hard to stop. If they're smart enough, they will find ways around the controls. Tribby certainly seemed motivated. Still, companies can't fall asleep against the possibility of internal crime.

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