Carla Burke, 63, of Anderson, Indiana was sentenced to 28 months in federal prison after pleading guilty to wire fraud and falsifying tax documents.
According to court documents, Carla Burke served as the Anderson Community School Corporation (ACSC) Food Service Department’s Bookkeeper since 2007. As part of her employment duties, Burke maintained the financial records, bank account, and vendor invoices for the Food Service Department, and generated checks in the name of the Department for payments to vendors.
From January 1, 2014, to June 30, 2019, Burke issued checks in the name of ACSC Food Service to herself as the payee and then cashed the checks at her personal bank. Burke falsified records by recording that the payee was a vendor, rather than herself. Burke then cashed the checks and used the money for her own personal expenditures, including gambling.
In order to conceal her scheme, Burke failed to report approximately $225,381 in income derived from the checks on five years of income tax returns, then lied to federal agents about her conduct.
The scheme was uncovered during a routine, scheduled Indiana State Board of Accounts (SBOA) audit. SBOA conducted a disbursement of funds test and found missing documentation. In total, Burke cleared approximately 312 fraudulent checks totaling $976,773.29 in losses to ACSC.
“The defendant stole nearly a million dollars intended to put food in the mouths of children to satisfy her own greed,” said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. “Public employment is a public trust, and the sentence imposed today shows that those who violate that trust will be held accountable. I commend the SBOA for their diligence and partnership with our office as we combat waste, fraud, and abuse on behalf of all Hoosiers.”
The Federal Bureau of Investigations, Internal Revenue Service, and Indiana State Board of Accounts investigated this case. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge, James P. Hanlon. Judge Hanlon also ordered that Burke be supervised by the U.S. Probation Office for 3 years following her release from Federal prison. Burke was also ordered to pay $976,772.39 in restitution to Anderson Community School Corporation and $141,190 to the Internal Revenue Service.
U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant United States Attorney Tiffany J. Preston, who prosecuted this case.
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