Kimberly Lovitt, 52, of Pace, Florida, and Amy Williams, 46, of Milton, Florida, have been sentenced to federal prison for their roles in embezzling over $844,000 from their employer. Lovitt received a 36-month sentence, while Williams was sentenced to 18 months. Both were convicted of wire fraud, money laundering, and filing false tax returns.
According to Acting United States Attorney Michelle Spaven, who announced the sentences, Lovitt and Williams, who are sisters, conspired from early 2016 to 2021 to steal funds from a locally owned Pensacola business where they were employed as office manager and receptionist, respectively. They used corporate credit cards for unauthorized personal purchases, with Lovitt manipulating accounting records and creating false documentation to conceal the scheme. Lovitt also failed to report the embezzled money as income on her federal tax returns.
“Abuse of trust, embezzlement, and tax evasion warrant significant criminal consequences,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Spaven, emphasizing that the defendants’ actions were “illegal and offensive to all hardworking Americans.”
Ron Loecker, Special Agent in Charge of the Tampa Field Office, noted that the theft caused “great financial strain on their employer and put other employees’ jobs at risk.” He added that the sentencings serve as a warning to those who “lie, cheat, and steal and then try to hide the ill-gotten gains from the IRS.”
The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Jeffrey Tharp following a joint investigation by the Pensacola Police Department and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, as part of the Emerald Coast Financial Crimes Task Force.
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