South Jordan Woman Sentenced To 30 Months In Federal Prison After Money Laundering Conviction

            SALT LAKE CITY – Monica Paris, age 31, of South Jordan, who pleaded guilty in February to one count of money laundering, will serve 30 months in federal prison. Judge Ted Stewart imposed the sentence in U.S. District Court in Salt Lake City Tuesday afternoon.

            Paris must report to the U.S. Bureau of Prisons on Nov. 5, 2013, to begin serving her sentence. She will be on supervised release for 36 months when she finishes her prison sentence. Judge Stewart also ordered her to pay full restitution of $462,455.80.

            In the plea agreement reached with federal prosecutors, Paris admitted she embezzled approximately $462,455.80 from Ultradent Products, Inc., her former employer. She used the funds she embezzled from her employer for personal expense.

            Paris worked at Ultradent, a privately-owned Utah corporation involved in the production and distribution of dental products, from 1997 until her termination around February 2012. Her last position at the company was assistant to the director of major accounts.

            According to court documents, as a part of her job duties, Paris was responsible for purchasing promotional materials used by Ultradent. The standard practice at the company involved Paris purchasing the items using her personal credit card and then seeking reimbursement for charges she incurred on the company’s behalf.

            As a part of her plea agreement, Paris admitted that beginning around August 2010 and continuing through February 2012, she fraudulently submitted expense reports for personal reimbursement payments for items she never actually purchased. She then fraudulently approved the expense reports on behalf of Ultradent and directed that the reimbursement payments be sent to her personal bank account. She also admitted that she fraudulently claimed that personal items she purchased at Sam’s Club, including large amounts of pre-paid credit cards, were company expenses for which she sought reimbursement payments. Using her Sam’s Club membership, she admitted she bought personal items using the credit cards of two other company employees. She then submitted the purchases for reimbursement and created false invoices to show that the purchases were for company expenses.

            Paris admitted that in August 2011, she sent a check for $10,891.29 to her credit union as payment for a car loan. She admitted she knew that the funds she transferred were stolen from her employer. Judge Stewart also signed a forfeiture order in the case ordering Paris to forfeit a 2007 Mazda vehicle, finding that there was a nexus between the car and her money laundering offense.

            The case is being prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Salt Lake City and investigated by special agents of IRS Criminal Investigation.