Embezzlement is the crime of stealing money or property that someone trusted you to manage or handle. The key feature of embezzlement is that the embezzler has legal access to the money: they're supposed to be taking care of it, but instead take it for themselves.

Imagine a school treasurer who's supposed to deposit fundraiser money into the school account but secretly keeps some for herself instead. Or picture a store manager who's responsible for depositing the day's earnings at the bank but pockets half the cash. These people aren't breaking into safes or grabbing money that didn't belong to them in the first place: they're abusing a position of trust.

What makes embezzlement particularly serious is the betrayal involved. When someone embezzles, they violate the confidence others placed in them while stealing. A company hires an accountant believing she'll handle their finances honestly. A charity trusts its director to spend donations on helping people. When these trusted people secretly redirect money to themselves, they commit embezzlement.

Embezzlement can involve huge sums: corporate executives have embezzled millions from their companies, and government officials have embezzled from public funds. But it can also be small: a cashier who regularly skims twenty dollars from the register is embezzling too.

People caught embezzling face criminal charges and may go to prison, but the damage to their reputation can last even longer.