Second Stockton Woman Pleads Guilty in Scheme to Embezzle More Than $283,000 from San Joaquin Child Care Referral Agency
| U.S. Attorney’s Office July 13, 2009 |
SACRAMENTO–Acting United States Attorney Lawrence G. Brown announced today that LAPHONE VONGKEO, 32, of Stockton, pleaded guilty today to embezzling from a program receiving federal funds. The guilty plea was entered before United States District Judge Frank C. Damrell, Jr.
This case is the product of a joint investigation by the FBI and the San Joaquin County District Attorney’s Office.
According to Assistant United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, who prosecuted the case, VONGKEO worked as a senior Payment Provider Analyst at the Family Resource and Referral Center, which receives funds from the San Joaquin County Human Services Agency, including federal funds, to pay child care providers for services rendered to qualifying parents on public assistance. VONGKEO admitted in her plea agreement that from November 2004, through July 2007, she used her position at the Family Resource and Referral Center to cause the Center to issue 88 checks totaling over $283,000 to two of her relatives who were not entitled to receive those checks. She then split the proceeds of the scheme with them.
Most of the checks were issued to MARY THONGDEE, 26, also of Stockton, who was also charged in the case. THONGDEE previously pleaded guilty to participating in the embezzlement scheme. She was sentenced by Judge Damrell on April 27, 2009, to 18 months in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, and was also ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $253,360.87.
Defendant VONGKEO is scheduled to be sentenced by Judge Damrell on October 5, 2009, at 10:00 am. The maximum statutory penalty for a violation of Section 666 of Title 18, the offense to which VONGKEO pleaded guilty, is ten years in prison, a $250,000 fine, an order of restitution, and three years of supervised release. However, the actual sentence will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account a number of variables, and any applicable statutory sentencing factors.