El Dorado Hills Man Sentenced to 2.5 Years in Prison for Embezzling More Than $400,000 from Employer

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —Jeffrey Lamson, 51, of El Dorado Hills, was sentenced today to two years and six months in prison for wire fraud in connection with a scheme to embezzle money from his former employer, United States Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner announced.

According to court documents, from at least 2009 through 2011, Lamson embezzled over $400,000 from a company in Placer and Sacramento Counties while he served that company as controller. Lamson used company funds to make unauthorized payments to himself and others and made payments to a fictitious vendor, controlled by Lamson, for services that were never performed. Lamson was ordered to pay over $400,000 in restitution for his fraudulent conduct.

Lamson was sentenced by United States District Court Judge John A. Mendez. During sentencing, Judge Mendez observed, “You are a contradiction. You work hard, you seem to be intelligent. I don’t understand why you did what you did. It’s puzzling to me.”

This case was the product of an investigation by the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation and its Financial Crimes Task Force. Assistant United States Attorneys Shelley D. Weger and Jean M. Hobler are prosecuting the case.