Tweet
http://www.virginislandsdailynews.co...me?id=17628654
WASHINGTON - A former manager in the District of Columbia tax office on Tuesday pleaded guilty to wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and tax evasion in the largest property tax scam in that city's history.
<span style="font-weight: bold">Harriette Walters, 51, cut more than 200 fraudulent property tax refund checks in a scheme that drained more than <span style="text-decoration: underline">$48 million</span> from the city's treasury over almost two decades.</span>
The agreement calls for Walters to serve from 15 to 18 years in prison and to pay restitution.
U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan accepted the plea provisionally, pending his approval of the sentence. No sentencing date has been set.
The wide ranging federal probe in <span style="font-weight: bold">the scam led investigators to St. Thomas in November 2007.</span> Federal agents searched Walter's family member's homes in estates Sorgenfri and Anna's Retreat.
<span style="font-weight: bold">Walters, who was born in the Virgin Islands</span> and had been a city employee in Washington since 1981, admitted to stealing more than $48 million by issuing the refunds to friends and relatives and then sharing the proceeds with them. Nine other people have pleaded guilty in the tax scam.
Walters assured the judge she understood the agreement.
"It would give me an opportunity to get out of prison and go home and see my family," she said, choking up. She acknowledged she would never be able to pay back the money.
Sullivan said he had "serious doubts" whether 15 to 18 years was a long enough sentence, but said he probably would approve the sentence if the parties' calculations under the sentencing guidelines were correct.
"We're talking about a loss of $48 million to the taxpayers of the District of Columbia. Forty-eight million dollars! That's unheard of in the history of jurisprudence in this city," said Sullivan, a native of the district. "The sad truth here is that the city is never going to be made whole for this loss."
Had the case gone to trial, Walters could have received a maximum of 30 years, Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Lynch said.
According to a statement of facts signed by Walters, she began issuing fraudulent checks in 1989 and continued until her arrest in November.
At first she issued phony refunds of about $4,000, but the amounts ballooned to more than $500,000 by 1997.
In 2004 alone, she funneled out $8.6 million by issuing 26 phony refunds.
According to court documents, Walters - who made an annual salary of about $80,000 - bought several expensive homes, deposited $8 million into her bank account over seven years, spent more than $1.4 million at Nieman Marcus luxury department store, and spent several hundred thousand dollars at other retailers such as Saks 5th Ave, Macy's and Louis Vuitton.
The Washington Post reported that Walters - known as "Mother Harriette" - doled out $1.2 million in checks and an undetermined amount of cash to her fellow employees, took dozens of gambling excursions to Las Vegas and Atlantic City, and shared the money with friends and family members who helped engineer the thefts.
WASHINGTON - A former manager in the District of Columbia tax office on Tuesday pleaded guilty to wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering and tax evasion in the largest property tax scam in that city's history.
<span style="font-weight: bold">Harriette Walters, 51, cut more than 200 fraudulent property tax refund checks in a scheme that drained more than <span style="text-decoration: underline">$48 million</span> from the city's treasury over almost two decades.</span>
The agreement calls for Walters to serve from 15 to 18 years in prison and to pay restitution.
U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan accepted the plea provisionally, pending his approval of the sentence. No sentencing date has been set.
The wide ranging federal probe in <span style="font-weight: bold">the scam led investigators to St. Thomas in November 2007.</span> Federal agents searched Walter's family member's homes in estates Sorgenfri and Anna's Retreat.
<span style="font-weight: bold">Walters, who was born in the Virgin Islands</span> and had been a city employee in Washington since 1981, admitted to stealing more than $48 million by issuing the refunds to friends and relatives and then sharing the proceeds with them. Nine other people have pleaded guilty in the tax scam.
Walters assured the judge she understood the agreement.
"It would give me an opportunity to get out of prison and go home and see my family," she said, choking up. She acknowledged she would never be able to pay back the money.
Sullivan said he had "serious doubts" whether 15 to 18 years was a long enough sentence, but said he probably would approve the sentence if the parties' calculations under the sentencing guidelines were correct.
"We're talking about a loss of $48 million to the taxpayers of the District of Columbia. Forty-eight million dollars! That's unheard of in the history of jurisprudence in this city," said Sullivan, a native of the district. "The sad truth here is that the city is never going to be made whole for this loss."
Had the case gone to trial, Walters could have received a maximum of 30 years, Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy Lynch said.
According to a statement of facts signed by Walters, she began issuing fraudulent checks in 1989 and continued until her arrest in November.
At first she issued phony refunds of about $4,000, but the amounts ballooned to more than $500,000 by 1997.
In 2004 alone, she funneled out $8.6 million by issuing 26 phony refunds.
According to court documents, Walters - who made an annual salary of about $80,000 - bought several expensive homes, deposited $8 million into her bank account over seven years, spent more than $1.4 million at Nieman Marcus luxury department store, and spent several hundred thousand dollars at other retailers such as Saks 5th Ave, Macy's and Louis Vuitton.
The Washington Post reported that Walters - known as "Mother Harriette" - doled out $1.2 million in checks and an undetermined amount of cash to her fellow employees, took dozens of gambling excursions to Las Vegas and Atlantic City, and shared the money with friends and family members who helped engineer the thefts.
, and spent <span style="font-weight: bold">several hundred thousand dollars at other retailers such as Saks 5th Ave, Macy's and Louis Vuitton</span></span>.</div></div>
Comment