By Dorothy Rowley
AFRO Staff Writer
Harriet Walters was sentenced to 17 1/2 years in prison for her role in tax fraud in the DC government. (Courtesy Photo)
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(July 1, 2009) - District of Columbia tax scheme mastermind Harriet Walters has been sentenced to 17 ½ years in prison.
Walters’ fate was handed down Tuesday after she was convicted late last year of pulling off the biggest heist in local government history. Walters siphoned some $50 million from the District while working as a manager in its Office of Tax and Revenue.
Walters, who had faced 120 yeas in prison, employed the assistance of several associates and relatives to carry out her tax refund scheme, which lasted for more than 18 years before it was discovered in November 2007.
In the wake of the discovery—which embarrassed Mayor Adrian Fenty and other city officials—some 30 tax office personnel were either fired or transferred to other city agencies.
Upon her arrest, the Caribbean native who had worked for the tax office for two decades, said she accepted full responsibility “for the part I played in the commitment of this crime…. I stand before your honor in full repentance. ... I made a decision not to lie anymore.”
Since her conviction, Walters, 52, has been in jail. Among the charges for which she pled guilty were wire fraud and money laundering. She was ordered to make restitution and tax payments and to date, $10 million in cash and assets have been recovered.
A panel which included lawyers, accountants and investigators listened on last year as Walters described to sentencing judge Emmett Sullivan how she was able to perpetuate her crimes for so long.
According to Sullivan, the details were shocking.
Walters started out embezzling small amounts of money, then as her scheme continued to go undetected, she began to issue larger checks – including one for at least a half-million dollars.
Most of the checks — which she issued — would be given to her accomplices to cash or deposit into various bank accounts. Some of the accounts bore the names of fictitious entities.
The accomplices would be well compensated with payments from Walters: For example, her brother Richard Walters who deposited checks totaling in excess of $4 million received at least $1.2 million in monies and home improvements.
At that time of the discovery, Walters’ niece – Jayrece Turnbull -- who had been among her 10 accomplices, refused to take no for an answer after a bank teller refused to handle a check deposit for more than $400,000. For her role, Turnbull received a nine-year prison term. The others have also pleaded guilty and are serving terms ranging from 12 months to six years.
During the time she was stealing money from the District’s tax coffers, Walters maintained a low key demeanor, but lived a life of luxury.
She bought jewelry; took expensive vacations and gambling trips and purchased cars and a huge home in one of Washington’s finer neighborhoods. Walters, who never married, also went on shopping sprees at high-end stores and lavished friends with both money and gifts.
Attired in blue prison-issued clothing for her sentencing, Walters conveyed her apologies to Sullivan.
But then she reportedly told him that if she were back in the tax office, “I could get each of you a check.”
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