A former Fairview Township tax collector has been sentenced to prison for embezzling over $400,000 in property taxes.
Karen McGinnis, 46, of Mountain Top, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on March 17, 2026, by United States District Judge Karoline Mehalchick to 20 months of imprisonment for embezzling public funds.
According to United States Attorney Brian D. Miller, from March 2023 to January 2025, McGinnis was the tax collector for Fairview Township responsible for collecting property taxes from the residents of Fairview Township, including taxes payable to the Township, Luzerne County, and the Crestwood School District.
During that timeframe, McGinnis embezzled more than $400,000 in property taxes and converted them to her own personal use by writing checks to herself from the tax collector bank accounts she maintained and controlled.
In addition to the sentence of imprisonment, Judge Mehalchick sentenced McGinnis to three years of supervised release following her term of imprisonment and ordered McGinnis to pay restitution in the amount of $367,088.35 to the victims of her crime.
McGinnis previously paid approximately $40,000 back into the tax collector bank accounts prior to her crime being discovered.
The Internal Revenue Service, Criminal Investigation Division investigated the case, and Assistant United States Attorney Kyle A. Moreno prosecuted the case.
McGinnis’s sentence marks the end of a lengthy investigation into the embezzlement scheme, which was first uncovered in 2025.
Related Federal Cases
- Laquanta Grant, Tax Fraud and Identity Theft, Alabama 2010 · Washington
- Nicole Hilstolsky Sentenced for Embezzlement, Pennsylvania, 2018 · Pennsylvania
- Karen McGinnis Sentenced to 20 Months for Tax Skimming, Scranton PA… · Alabama
- Nicole Hilstolsky, Embezzlement, Pennsylvania, 2018 · Pennsylvania
- Nicole Hilstolsky, Theft, Pennsylvania 2018 · Pennsylvania
Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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