HOUSTON – A 45-year-old woman has been ordered to prison for her role in defrauding the Federal Highway Administration Congestion mitigation Air Quality and Surface Transportation Program (FHWA-CMAQ), announced U.S. Attorney Ryan K. Patrick along with Special Agent in Charge Joseph Zschiesche of the Department of Transportation – Office of Inspector General (DOT-OIG).
Shonda Renee Stubblefield, the owner of World Corporation Inc. (WCI), was convicted of all counts in the indictment, including theft of public money, mail fraud, wire fraud, money laundering and aggravated identity theft. A federal jury found she stole $125,659.90 from the Department of Transportation (DOT) CMAQ program funded by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA).
The CMAQ Program provides money to reduce traffic congestion and thereby reduce air pollution in certain areas. The jury heard that Stubblefield stole the money by falsely and fraudulently representing to Houston Galveston Area Counsel (HGAC) that she had hundreds of employees working at WCI who participated in a telework program designed to reduce air-pollution.
The United States proved at trial through documents and 26 witnesses that Stubblefield created a fake business list, fake bank records, fake income and earnings statements and other false WCI business records including employee timesheets, invoices and match documents. The testimony included that of an individual whose identification information Stubblefield stole and used to create a fake $18,100 check that was submitted to the government to further the theft.
Stubblefield created at least 500 fake and fictitious WCI employee profiles that included fake names, addresses and email accounts. The defense attempted to convince the jury that Stubblefield was not the person who engaged in the criminal activity, despite the fact that her name was on virtually all WCI business records, at least four witnesses identified her and the money trail led directly to Stubblefield’s bank account.
U.S. District Judge Alfred Bennett handed Stubblefield a total 72-month sentence, with 48 months for theft, mail fraud, wire fraud and money laundering to be followed by an additional 24 months for aggravated identity theft, which will be served consecutively. She will also serve three years of supervised release following her release.
Stubblefield has been and will remain in custody pending transfer to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility to be determined in the near future. The DOT-OIG conducted the investigation, and Assistant U.S. Attorneys Julie Redlinger and Michael Day prosecuted the case.
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Key Facts
- State: Texas
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release â†â€â€
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