Baden Tax Collector Sentenced to 3 Years in Prison for Stealing from Borough, Ambridge School District

PITTSBURGH - A resident of Baden, Pennsylvania, has been sentenced in federal court to 37 months imprisonment followed by 3 years of supervised release on his conviction of mail fraud and filing false income tax returns, United States Attorney David J. Hickton announced today.

United States District Judge Arthur J. Schwab imposed the sentence on Keith Kristek, age 57, of Baden, Pennsylvania.

According to information presented to the court, from approximately January, 2007 through February, 2015, Kristek, who was the de facto Tax Collector for Baden Borough, devised and executed a scheme to steal in excess of $1,060,000 in tax payments from Baden Borough and the Ambridge Area School District. Additionally, Kristek failed to report his receipt of the stolen funds and filed false income tax returns with the IRS for the tax years of 2011 through 2014.

Assistant United States Attorney Lee J. Karl prosecuted this case on behalf of the government.

U.S. Attorney Hickton commended the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Internal Revenue Service, and the Beaver County District Attorney’s Office for the investigation leading to the successful prosecution of Kristek.