Lawton Woman Pleads Guilty to Embezzlement and Filing a False Tax Return

OKLAHOMA CITY—SANDRA JOHNSON, of Snyder, Oklahoma, has pled guilty to embezzling from a health care benefit program and to signing a false personal income tax return, announced Sanford C. Coats, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.

From May of 2006 until the spring of 2009, Ms. Johnson worked as the office manager for Dr. Elizabeth Gail Lewis, a pediatrician in Lawton. Her duties included depositing checks from insurance companies that were intended to pay for medical services. As she admitted today before United States District Judge Timothy D. DeGiusti, she cashed many of these insurance checks during 2007 and 2008 at the drive-through at Liberty National Bank in Lawton. She testified that she did not correct bank employees who greeted her as Dr. Lewis. She used the cash for personal purposes, without Dr. Lewis’ knowledge. Ms. Johnson also admitted that she failed to report the cash from these diverted insurance checks as income on her 2008 personal federal income tax return.

In a plea agreement, Ms. Johnson has agreed to pay $641,229.48 in restitution to Dr. Lewis.

Ms. Johnson’s punishment for embezzlement from a health care benefit program could be as much as ten years in prison, three years of supervised release, and a $250,000 fine. Her punishment for signing a false tax return could be as much as three years in prison, one year of supervised release, and an additional $250,000 fine.

These charges are the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Criminal Investigations Division of the Internal Revenue Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Scott E. Williams.

Reference is made to court filings for further information.