Probe into RRAD scheme unearths unrelated crimes

Employees of two men involved in investigation face charges of their own

The investigation of one crime can lead to the discovery another.

Such is the case of a Texarkana woman facing federal charges for stealing from her former employer and a former Bowie County employee recently accused of pocketing money collected as payment toward fines.

Tonya Elaine Gunderson, 40, sniffled and wiped her eyes Wednesday at a hearing before U.S. Magistrate Judge Caroline Craven in Texarkana’s downtown federal building. Gunderson entered a guilty plea with the help of Texarkana lawyer Cory Floyd to an information charging her with fraud by mail in the Texarkana division of the Eastern District of Arkansas.

Gunderson was working as a bookkeeper for Advantage Distributors in Texarkana in March 2010 when she began using a company credit card for personal expenses such as utility bills, gas and food, according to court documents used to create the following account. As the bookkeeper, Gunderson paid the credit card bill and was able to conceal her misdeeds, at least for a while.

A federal investigation into area businesses issuing phony invoices to Red River Army Depot for tires, equipment and services never delivered brought Gunderson’s thefts to light. An owner of Advantage Distributors has entered a guilty plea in the RRAD fake invoice scheme and awaits sentencing.

Gunderson will return to court for sentencing before U.S. District Judge Robert Schroeder once the court has received a presentence report including a recommendation for punishment under federal guidelines. At Wednesday’s hearing, Assistant U. S. Attorney Ryan Locker said Gunderson’s plea agreement includes five years of federal probation and $41,102.87 in restitution.

Craven released Gunderson on a $5,000 unsecured bond.

The RRAD phony invoices case indirectly led to the discovery of another alleged theft. Patrick James was serving as Precint 7 justice of the peace for Bowie County when he was indicted in the RRAD case. James recently entered a guilty plea to misdemeanor tampering with a governmental record related to paperwork originating from a business he owns in Hooks, Texas. When the federal indictment naming James as a defendant was unsealed, the Texas Commission on Judicial Conduct suspended him from his justice of the peace position and from his duties as municipal judge for Hooks, Texas.

Bowie County Justice of the Peace Steven Young took over James’ former office. Young discovered discrepancies in the office’s accounting that were traced back to James’ clerk, Lori Ann Brown. Brown, 29, is accused of stealing more than $4,000 in fine payments. Brown was arrested April 24. The case against her is still pending.