Marydel Woman Sentenced for Embezzling Over $1.2 Million from Her Employer

Greenbelt, Maryland - U.S. District Judge George J. Hazel sentenced Janice McCumbie, age 45, of Marydel, Maryland, today to 37 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release for conspiring to commit wire fraud in connection with a scheme to steal over $1.2 million from a consulting company. Judge Hazel entered an order that McCumbie forfeit and pay restitution of $1,249,267.53, the loss resulting from her conduct.

The sentence was announced by United States Attorney for the District of Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein and Special Agent in Charge Stephen E. Vogt of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to her plea agreement, McCumbie worked for a global consulting business that had offices in Maryland and elsewhere.  Clients paid large retainers to secure consulting services.  The consulting company would issue refund checks to the clients in certain circumstances, including when a client’s retainer exceeded the amount of work that the consulting company actually performed or when the client made duplicate payments to the consulting company. McCumbie’s duties included coordinating client refunds.

Between June and December 2008, McCumbie caused the consulting company to issue six fraudulent refund checks totaling $121,081.22 to a co-conspirator in exchange for a share of the check proceeds.

From February 2009 to October 2013, McCumbie caused the consulting company to issue 42 false refund checks totaling $910,490.74 to co-defendant Leonard Smedley in exchange for a share of the check proceeds.  Similarly, from October 2010 to November 2013, McCumbie caused the consulting company to issue 17 false refund checks totaling $217,695.57 to her niece, co-defendant Amber Gayleard, who cashed the checks and shared the proceeds with McCumbie. Smedley and Gayleard were not clients of the consulting company.

Leonard Smedley II, age 35, of Capitol Heights, Maryland; Amber Gayleard, age 29, of Schuylkillhaven, Pennsylvania, and Brian Hooper, age 43, of Woodbridge, Virginia previously pleaded guilty to the conspiracy.  Judge Hazel sentenced: Hooper to 27 months in prison and ordered him to pay restitution of $1,031,571.96; Gayleard to 21 months in prison and ordered her to pay restitution of $217,695.57; and Smedley to 18 months in prison and ordered him to pay restitution of $910,490.74.

United States Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein praised the FBI for its work in the investigation and thanked Assistant United States Attorneys Leah Jo Bressack and David Salem, who prosecuted the case.