BATH — A former Bath Iron Works treasurer on Wednesday admitted to embezzling nearly $300,000 from the Local S6 of the machinists’ union.

According to court records, Ryan Jones, 34, of Biddeford, stole $281,865 from the union between May 2012 and November 2016 while serving as secretary-treasurer of Local S6 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers.

Jones’ tenure as the union treasurer ended in January when he failed to win re-election, according to documents from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Portland.

Shortly after, newly elected union officials discovered discrepancies with union finances, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The ensuing federal investigation revealed that Jones had made almost 200 unauthorized withdrawals from the union’s bank account, fabricated monthly bank statements to conceal his withdrawals and provided the fabricated bank statements to union auditors to deceive them, according to a U.S. Attorney’s Office press release.

Jones was indicted in August in the federal court. He now faces up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $10,000 fine. He will also be ordered to pay full restitution to the union, according to the release.

The investigation was conducted by the Bath Police Department; the U.S. Department of Labor, Office of Labor-Management Standards; and the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

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