Alamo Heights architecture firm alleges ex-bookkeeper embezzled almost $1.7 million

Chris Lingle has taken to Facebook to document the glamorous lifestyle he and his wife, Sarah Lingle, share. He’s posted photographs of vacations in exotic locales, a new Audi automobile, luxury watches, designer shoes and home improvements. But the San Antonio couple now are facing allegations that they have been paying for it with money stolen from Alamo Heights’ Sage Architecture Inc., where Sarah Lingle worked as a bookkeeper and office manager for almost five years. In a lawsuit filed last month in state District Court in San Antonio, the architecture and landscape architecture firm accuses her of repeatedly using a company debit card to pay for luxury items and ordinary expenses such as mortgage payments and grocery bills.

Sage has discovered almost $1.6 million in thefts from charges on the debit card, which it says was only authorized for purchasing office supplies and equipment. In addition, it says it found nearly $96,000 she allegedly stole by forging checks. Attempts to reach the Lingles for comment were unsuccessful. Phone numbers for them were either not working or not accepting calls. She owns a house in the 27200 block of Spiral Canyon on the far North Side. Randy Dove, a Sage principal, issued a statement through San Antonio attorney William Ford. “We are extremely disappointed to learn that a person we had placed such a high level of trust(in) had been stealing from us over the past five years,” he said. “While this was a shock to everyone in our company, we are moving forward — continuing to serve our clients as we always have. This in no way has affected our day-to-day operations.” Dove added the firm “will continue to cooperate with both state and federal authorities as we go through this process. We plan to leave no stone unturned.”