Quarter horse breeder Crundwell jailed for $US53m fraud
American quarter Equus caballus breeder Rita Crundwell, who defrauded a small-scale Illinois urban nitty-gritty of to a greater extent than than $US53 million, has been jailed for nineteen years together with vii months.
The 60-year-old’s sentence, handed downwards yesteryear US District Judge Philip Reinhard inwards Federal Court inwards Rockford, Illinois, is only v months curt of the maximum jail term available for wire fraud, to which Crundwell pleaded guilty on Nov 14.
Crundwell, who was ane of the top quarter Equus caballus breeders inwards the United States, stole $US53.7 ane chiliad 1000 from the urban nitty-gritty of Dixon over 2 decades patch serving every bit its fiscal controller, or comptroller.
Crundwell was taken into custody inwards handcuffs to instantly start out her judgement inwards federal prison.
She had used the proceeds to finance her quarter Equus caballus farming concern together with life of luxury.
It is believed to travel the largest theft of world funds inwards province history.
Judge Reinhard said toward the cease of the sentencing, which took to a greater extent than than 2 hours: “This has been a massive stealing of world coin – monies entrusted to you lot every bit a world guardian of Dixon, Illinois.
Crundwell, he said, showed “greater passion for the welfare of her horses than the people of Dixon who she represented.”
Assistant US Attorney Joseph Pedersen told the judge: “While the urban nitty-gritty was suffering, the accused was living her dreams.”
Crundwell, he said, continued to have got millions from Dixon to back upward her lavish lifestyle patch she knew that Dixon, a urban nitty-gritty of virtually 16,000 people virtually 100 miles southwest of Chicago, was inwards dire fiscal straits.
Crundwell must serve at to the lowest degree 85 per centum of the judgement every bit at that topographic point is no parole inwards the federal prison theatre system.
Judge Reinhard granted the government’s asking for an upward variance inwards the federal sentencing guidelines.
In add-on to the fiscal loss, he industrial plant life that Crundwell caused a meaning non-monetary loss, which involved a loss of world confidence inwards local authorities together with a meaning disruption of authorities role that struck “at the really middle of Dixon’s abilities to render essentials for its citizenry”.
The estimate ordered agreed restitution to the urban nitty-gritty of Dixon totaling $53,740,394, together with he imposed an agreed forfeiture judgment inwards the same amount.
Following her arrest inwards Apr concluding year, Crundwell agreed to the sale of assets she had acquired amongst proceeds from her decades-long fraud scheme.
To date, the US Marshals Service has recovered to a greater extent than than $US12.38 ane chiliad 1000 from sales, including online together with alive auctions, of virtually 400 quarter horses, vehicles, trailers, tack, a luxury motor home, jewelry together with personal belongings, patch sales of existent estate inwards Illinois together with Florida stay pending.
The cyberspace proceeds from the forfeited belongings – nearly $US9.5 ane chiliad 1000 thence far – are beingness held inwards escrow pending farther proceedings on restitution to the City of Dixon.
Under federal law, the authorities may travel yesteryear away along to seek additional assets of a accused together with obtain restitution for upward to twenty years after a accused is released from prison.
UStates Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, Gary Shapiro, praised the FBI agents who conducted the investigation together with the US Marshals Service for its efficient administration of the seized assets.
“We have got used criminal together with civil forfeiture proceedings to ensure the recovery of every bit much coin every bit possible for the City of Dixon together with its taxpayers,” he said.
“Unfortunately, this example serves every bit a painful lesson that trust, without verification, tin atomic number 82 to betrayal.”
The exceptional agent inwards accuse of the Chicago Office of the FBI, Cory Nelson, said: “The police clitoris is clear. Those who grip positions of trust must non abuse that trust. We stay committed to holding anyone using an official seat for personal gain, every bit Rita Crundwell did for years, fully accountable for their corrupt actions.”
Crundwell began working for Dixon’s finance subdivision inwards 1970 patch withal inwards high school, together with she was appointed comptroller/treasurer inwards 1983.
She began the fraud scheme on Dec 18, 1990, when she opened a tube banking firm account, which she lone controlled, inwards the advert of the City of Dixon.
It was known every bit the RSCDA account. The initials stood for “Reserve Sewer Capital Development Account” although no-such concern human relationship genuinely existed for the city, together with Crundwell did non divulge its existence.
At the sentencing, authorities also presented prove that Crundwell stole at to the lowest degree $US25,000 from a split upward Dixon banking firm concern human relationship for its Sister City programme betwixt 1988 together with 1990 earlier her fraud scheme began.
Crundwell began transferring coin from urban nitty-gritty accounts to the RSCDA concern human relationship inwards Jan 1991.
Subsequently, she used her seat every bit comptroller to transfer funds from Dixon’s Money Market concern human relationship together with diverse other urban nitty-gritty accounts to its Capital Development Fund account.
She thence repeatedly transferred urban nitty-gritty funds from the Capital Development Account into the RSCDA concern human relationship together with used the coin to pay for her personal together with individual concern expenses, including horse-farming operations, personal credit carte du jour payments, existent estate together with vehicles.
In 1991, she transferred to a greater extent than than $US181,000 to the RSCDA account. As the fraud scheme continued, the amounts she stole increased to a high of $US5.8 ane chiliad 1000 inwards 2008, together with she took an average of to a greater extent than than $US2.5 ane chiliad 1000 a twelvemonth over the 20-year course of didactics of the scheme.
While she was stealing the money, Crundwell participated inwards budget meetings amongst urban nitty-gritty council members together with diverse urban nitty-gritty subdivision heads. She repeatedly stated that the city’s lack of funds was due to a downturn inwards the economic scheme together with because the State of Illinois was behind inwards its payments.
At the fourth dimension she made those statements, Crundwell was stealing millions of dollars, causing Dixon to cutting its budget, which had a meaning deport on on urban nitty-gritty operations.
As part of the fraud scheme, Crundwell created 159 fictitious invoices purported to travel from the State of Illinois to present the city’s auditors that the funds she was fraudulently depositing into the RSCDA concern human relationship were beingness used for a legitimate purpose. In ane instance, on September 8, 2009, Crundwell wrote checks for $US150,000 together with $US200,000 drawn on 2 of the city’s multiple banking firm accounts.
She deposited both checks into Dixon’s Capital Development Fund concern human relationship and, afterwards the same day, wrote a banking firm check for $US350,000 payable to “Treasurer” together with deposited that banking firm check into the tube RSCDA account.
Crundwell created a fictitious invoice to back upward the payment of $US350,000 to the State of Illinois that falsely indicated the payment was for a sewer projection inwards Dixon that the province completed. Later, on September 8, 2009, Crundwell wrote a banking firm check drawn on the RSCDA concern human relationship for $US225,000, which she deposited into her personal RC Quarter Horses account.
She used that coin to embrace a $US225,000 check, dated September 1, 2009, drawn on the RC Quarter Horses concern human relationship to buy a quarter Equus caballus named Pizzazzy Lady. The buy banking firm check would non have got cleared if Crundwell had non deposited $US225,000, using urban nitty-gritty funds, into her Equus caballus account.
To conceal the scheme, Crundwell picked upward the city’s mail, including banking firm statements for the RSCDA account, to forbid other employees from learning virtually the tube account.
When she was away, she asked a relative or other urban nitty-gritty employees to alternative upward the postal service together with split upward whatsoever of her mail, including the statements for the RSCDA account, from the residual of the city’s mail.
Dixon’s mayor reported Crundwell to police clitoris enforcement authorities inwards the autumn of 2011 after unopen to other urban nitty-gritty employee assumed her duties during an extended unpaid vacation.
Crundwell, whose annual salary was $US80,000, received 4 weeks of paid opor-garai together with she took an additional 12 weeks of unpaid opor-garai inwards 2011.
While Crundwell was absent, her replacement requested all of the city’s banking firm statements. After reviewing them, the employee brought the records of the RSCDA concern human relationship to the attending of the mayor, who was unaware of the account’s existence.
While serving every bit Dixon’s comptroller, Crundwell also owned RC Quarter Horses, LLC, together with kept her horses at her ranch on Red Brick Road inwards Dixon together with the Meri-J Ranch inwards Beloit, Wisconsin, every bit good every bit amongst diverse trainers across the country.
In add-on to the horses together with all of their equipment, amid the assets seized or restrained were Crundwell’s 2 residences together with Equus caballus farm inwards Dixon, a abode inwards Englewood, Florida, lxxx acres of vacant Blue Planet inwards Lee County, a 2009 luxury motor home, to a greater extent than than 4 dozen trucks, trailers together with other motorized farm vehicles, a 2005 Ford Thunderbird convertible, a 1967 Chevrolet Corvette roadster, a pontoon boat, jewelry, together with virtually $US224,898 inwards cash from 2 banking firm accounts.
Crundwell was good known on the national quarter Equus caballus circuit. She had collected 8 direct titles every bit top possessor at the American Quarter Horse Association’s annual World Show inwards Oklahoma City.
Many idea her wealth had stemmed from her success inwards the quarter Equus caballus industry.
» Pictures from the Crundwell auctions
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