Dallas, TX – A Dallas County jury has found 47-year-old Lieu Bich Phan of Northlake, Texas, guilty of Theft of Property valued between $30,000 and $150,000 after she stole more than $44,000 from her employer, Five Star Correctional Services. The company provides food services to county jails across Texas.
Phan, who worked as an account clerk, unlawfully accessed company credit cards and linked them to her personal PayPal accounts to make unauthorized transactions.
During the trial, Phan fled on the second day of proceedings but was found guilty in absentia.
In the punishment phase, prosecutors presented evidence detailing 26 years of criminal activity, including 12 offenses she was being supervised for through Denton County via the Interstate Compact. Phan was already on parole for forgery and other crimes at the time of the theft.
Her criminal history revealed an elaborate pattern of deception. Prosecutors described how Phan escaped from Iowa, faked a pregnancy and childbirth, and even fabricated her father’s and her own deaths to solicit sympathy and financial support. She also infiltrated a Facebook group for French Bulldog owners, where she allegedly manipulated members for money.
Following the jury’s verdict, the Judge of the 194th Judicial District Court sentenced Phan to 65 years in prison.
A warrant for her arrest remains active, and she is currently at large.
The case was prosecuted by Lead Prosecutor Melinda Chaney and 2nd Chair Andrea Ingram, with investigative support from DA Investigators Hoyt Hoffman, Alexander Lipsey, Alex Pinales, and Garrick Whaley, and DA Forensic Financial Analyst DeAnna Debenport. The Dallas Police Department, led by Detective Ryan McCarrick, conducted the initial investigation.
