Fort Oglethorpe woman sentenced to prison for embezzlement, tax fraud

Alice Sue Smith of Fort Oglethorpe has been sentenced to three years, seven months in prison to be followed by three years of supervised release for stealing from her employer and filing false tax returns.

According to Acting U.S. Attorney Erskine, the criminal information and other information presented in court, Smith was the bookkeeper and office manager at Chattanooga Coin Inc. (“CCI”) from 2004 to 2018.

From 2009 to 2018, she forged the signatures of CCI’s owners on approximately 1,400 checks that she then cashed.

Smith also created fictitious check stubs in CCI’s financial records to cover up her fraud. In total, she stole approximately $1.24 million from CCI over nearly a decade. She also failed to report the embezzled funds and other legitimate income on her income tax returns.

“When employees take advantage of their positions of trust to steal from small, family-owned businesses, real victims suffer serious financial harm,” Acting U.S. Attorney Kurt R. Erskine said. “As in this case, there are real and significant consequences for employees who are caught stealing from their employers.”

In addition to her sentence, the court also ordered her to pay restitution to CCI and the United States totaling approximately $1.48 million. She was convicted of wire fraud and filing a false tax return on Feb. 11, 2021, after pleading guilty.

“Smith let her greed blind her to responsibilities her company entrusted her with,” said Chris Hacker, special agent in charge of FBI Atlanta. “For that she will be held accountable.”

The Federal Bureau of Investigation and IRS Criminal

Investigation (IRS-CI) investigated the case with assistance from the Rossville Police Department.

“This sentencing sends a clear message that stealing from your employer is not okay,” said Demetrius Hardeman, assistant special agent in charge, IRS-CI Atlanta Field Office. “No one should ever feel they have the right to take what is not theirs. IRS-CI will continue to work diligently, in concert with the FBI and U.S. Attorney’s Office, to ensure everyone pays their fair share.”

Assistant U.S. Attorneys Michael Qin and Russell Phillips prosecuted this case.