NEWARK, N.J. – In a shocking display of greed, Richard Winter, a 53-year-old bookkeeper from Pompton Lakes, New Jersey, has pleaded guilty to embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from clients between 2016 and 2019.
According to documents filed in this case, Winter devised a scheme to fraudulently misappropriate funds from his clients while serving as a bookkeeper for various companies. He accomplished this by authorizing bank wire transfers from the victim companies, diverting vendor payments to his own bank accounts through an online payment portal, and issuing checks payable to “cash” from the victim companies and depositing those checks into his bank accounts.
Winter’s scheme went undetected for several years, with the bookkeeper failing to file tax returns reporting the income he received from his fraud for tax years 2016 through 2019.
As a result of his actions, Winter now faces serious consequences. The wire fraud charge carries a maximum potential penalty of 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense, whichever is greatest. The tax evasion charge carries a maximum potential penalty of five years in prison and a $100,000 fine, or twice the gross gain or loss from the offense.
Sentencing is scheduled for July 9, 2024. U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger credited U.S. Postal Inspection Service in Newark and special agents of IRS-Criminal Investigation with the investigation leading to Winter’s guilty plea.
The government is represented by Assistant U.S. Attorney Shontae D. Gray of the Economic Crimes Unit in Newark.
Richard Winter, 53, of Pompton Lakes, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Esther Salas in Newark federal court to an information charging him with one count of wire fraud and one count tax evasion.
Key Facts
- State: New Jersey
- Category: White Collar Crime
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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