Texas Woman Jailed, Spent Almost $1 Million of Stolen Money on TikTok

A Texas woman was sentenced to 35 years in prison after being found guilty of stealing $1.2 million from a former employer and spending most of the money on TikTok.

Staci Blackmon, 39, was convicted of two theft charges for over $300,000 after she began stealing money from her former employer, a Southlake home-construction company, and her late boss, a senior partner who unexpectedly passed away.

Prosecutors alleged that Blackmon began embezzling funds in 2019, stole money from her late boss’ bank account, and used a company credit card to spend $900,000 on TikTok coins, as reported by NBC 5 Dallas Fort Worth.

After she was convicted of the two theft charges, she received 35-year sentences for each to be served concurrently.

TikTok coins can be used to access virtual services on the social media platform, and those who purchase them can spend them on gifts, other creators, or themselves to boost their own content.

A pack of 700 TikTok coins costs under $10, while 17,500 costs just over $230.

Blackmon also allegedly spent the stolen money on a suite for the Dallas Mavericks, home furniture, and other luxury purchases.

Blackmon was arrested and indicted in 2022 after her late boss’ daughter contacted police regarding the missing funds from her trust fund, and her former employer discovered the money was going to TikTok, according to an affidavit acquired by NBC 5 .

In an interview with Fox 4 News, Tarrant County Assistant District Attorney Lori Varnell described Blackmon as “a trusted individual,” adding that she was “deceptive upon deceptive upon deceptive.”

She continued, “Staci Blackmon actually befriended the heir of this senior partner and was helping her figure out where all he had accounts and all of this, and so she was literally walking through this with the person she was victimizing.”

Varnell also said that Blackmon used her late boss’ bank account with his life savings to pay off the company credit card, which she used to send money to TikTok through PayPal.

Varnell said, “She didn’t buy any assets, she didn’t put the money anywhere and had nothing to offer to pay back that was comparable to the amount that she stole.”

She also said that although Blacmon did not graduate high school, she believed her to be extremely intelligent and adept at hiding money.

The case was investigated by the Southlake Police Department, with help from DA investigator Dara Couch.

According to court documents obtained by Fox 4 News, Blackmon is planning to appeal her sentence.

Newsweek reached out to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s office for comment via email.

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