September 16, 2015

Former Collin Street Bakery Executive and Wife Sentenced

DALLAS—Sandy Jenkins, a former executive at the Collin Street Bakery (“the Bakery”) in Corsicana, Texas, and his wife, Kay Jenkins, were sentenced today on felony convictions stemming from Sandy Jenkins’s embezzlement of approximately $16 million from the Bakery, announced U.S. Attorney John Parker of the Northern District of Texas.

Sandy Jenkins was sentenced by U.S. District Judge Ed Kinkeade to serve a total of 120 months in federal prison. Judge Kinkeade sentenced Kay Jenkins to five years’ probation. Kay Jenkins was further ordered to complete 100 hours of community service and to submit a formal apology in writing to the Bakery.

Sandy Jenkins, 66, served as the Corporate Controller for the Bakery from February 1998 to June 21, 2013. After the Bakery discovered the fraud, he was terminated on June 21, 2013. He pleaded guilty in May 2014 to one count of mail fraud, one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering, and one count of making a false statement to a financial institution. Kay Jenkins, 64, of Corsicana, pleaded guilty in May 2015 to one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering.

According to documents filed in the case and evidence proffered at the sentencing hearing, beginning at least as early as December 2004, and continuing until his termination from the Bakery, Sandy Jenkins engaged in a massive scheme to defraud the Bakery. During that time, he embezzled more than $16 million from the Bakery, and he and his wife, Kay Jenkins, used that money to bank-roll a lavish lifestyle. The government introduced evidence at sentencing identifying the 223 trips on private jets as well as the locations (primarily Santa Fe, New Mexico; Aspen, Colorado; and Napa, California, among other places), with a total cost that exceeded $3.3 million.

The government also showed at sentencing that the Jenkins purchased 38 vehicles over the course of the scheme, including many Lexus automobiles, a Mercedes Benz, a Bentley, and a Porsche. According to evidence proffered at sentencing, Sandy Jenkins and Kay Jenkins purchased a new automobile every time they needed an oil change. The government further established at sentencing that the Jenkins spent over $11 million on a Black American Express card alone—roughly $98,000 per month over the course of the scheme—for a couple that had a legitimate income, through the Bakery, of approximately $50,000 per year. The evidence at sentencing also established that a significant portion of stolen funds (approximately $1.2 million) were spent at Neiman Marcus at Northpark in Dallas where Sandy Jenkins and Kay Jenkins had nicknames, “Fruitcake” and “Cupcake,” respectively. The government further proffered evidence at sentencing that the Jenkins stopped shopping at Neiman Marcus when Neiman’s ran out of things to sell them.

Based on the evidence at sentencing, the Court determined that the total loss as a result of Sandy Jenkins’s offense was $16,766,645.70. Through the efforts of law enforcement in this case, the government recovered approximately $4,000,000 in property and cash that will be turned over to the Bakery as partial restitution for the losses suffered in this case. That includes the following: (a) four vehicles, including a 2005 Lexus SC, a 2010 Mercedes Benz CL550, a 2013 GMC Yukon Denali, and a 2013 BMW X53 (having an approximate value of $150,000); (b) 532 luxury items, including 41 bracelets, 15 pairs of cufflinks, 21 pairs of earrings, 16 furs, 61 handbags, 45 necklaces, 9 sets of pearls, 55 rings, and 98 watches (having an approximate value of $3.5 million); $580,754.90 in cash; a wine collection (having an approximate value of $50,000.00); and a Steinway electronic piano (having a value of $58,500.00). As a result of the turnover of property, the Court ordered restitution jointly and severally for Sandy and Kay Jenkins in the amount of $12,697,921.79 to be paid to the Bakery.

The FBI conducted the investigation with assistance from the Corsicana Police Department and the Austin Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorney J. Nicholas Bunch prosecuted the case and Deputy Criminal Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney Melissa Childs handled the forfeiture.