Former Employee Of Allstate Electrical Pleads Guilty To Embezzlement And Tax Fraud

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma – Renea I. Windham, of Oklahoma City, pled guilty in federal court today to making a forged security and filing a false tax return in connection with her embezzlement of more than $140,000 from a metro electrical contracting business, announced Sanford C. Coats, United States Attorney for the Western District of Oklahoma.

Windham is the former bookkeeper at Allstate Electrical Contractors, Inc., in Oklahoma City. According to the Information filed in the case, Windham made and possessed a forged check from Allstate payable to her for $4,380.08. At today’s plea hearing, Windham admitted that she prepared that check to herself without Allstate’s permission, and caused the company’s accounting records to show the check was instead issued to a legitimate electrical company. Windham also admitted that she embezzled more than $140,000 from Allstate from 2010 to 2013. The Information also alleged that Windham submitted a false federal income tax return for tax year 2012 by failing to report substantial income. At today’s plea hearing, Windham admitted that she did not claim more than $60,000 of embezzled income from Allstate on her 2012 federal income tax return.

At sentencing, Windham faces up to ten years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000 on the forged security charge and up to three years in federal prison and a fine up to $250,000.00 on the tax charge. She agreed in her plea agreement to pay restitution to Allstate in the amount of $143,057.10. She also agreed to pay restitution to the Internal Revenue Service in the amount of her federal income tax due, to be determined by the Court. United States District Judge Robin J. Cauthron will sentence Windham on December 11, 2013.

These charges are the result of an investigation conducted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation, and the United States Secret Service. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Chris M. Stephens.