Greeneville, Tenn. – A federal judge has sentenced Leslie D. Bethea, 30, from Surgoinsville, TN, to 78 months in prison for conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, money laundering, and making false statements. The sentence was handed down by Honorable J. Ronnie Greer in the Eastern District of Tennessee.
Bethea, who pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and one count of making a false statement to her probation officer, will also serve three years of supervised release after her prison term. She has been ordered to pay $20,805 in restitution for theft.
According to court documents, Bethea previously served a 24-month sentence for wire fraud. After her release from prison on October 8, 2020, she violated the terms of her supervised release by obtaining a fraudulent Payroll Protection Program loan of $20,805.
The loan application contained false claims about her income and criminal history. Bethea used part of the proceeds for luxury travel and elective surgery in Florida. She also submitted a false monthly supervision report, falsely claiming she had minimal expenses and no out-of-state travel.
U.S. Attorney Francis M. Hamilton III announced the sentence, which was the result of an investigation led by Senior Special Agent Thomas Whitehead of the United States Secret Service. Assistant United States Attorney Mac D. Heavener represented the government.
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Key Facts
- State: Tennessee
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes|Public Corruption|White Collar Crime
- Source: Official Source ↗
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