Ex-treasurer for Va. Senate minority leader is accused of stealing from him
|
Version 0 of 1. RICHMOND — Federal prosecutors on Monday charged a Fairfax woman with embezzling $653,000 in campaign funds from Senate Minority Leader Richard L. Saslaw. While serving as treasurer of the Fairfax Democrat’s campaign, Linda Diane Wallis, 51, had 73 fraudulent checks from Saslaw’s account made out to herself and two bogus companies she had set up with a co-conspirator, according to a criminal information, a charging instrument normally used when a person intends to plead guilty. The co-conspirator, who has not been charged, was identified as “D.M.” in the information. “All of the checks were issued without knowledge or permission of Senator Saslaw or his campaign staff, and were deposited into accounts she independently controlled or that were jointly controlled with D.M.,” the information stated. Uncovered by authorities late last year and publicly disclosed by Saslaw in January, the alleged theft put a dent in the minority leader’s war chest before critical elections. His party needs to pick up just one seat in elections this fall to retake control of the Senate. Saslaw declined to comment on the charges Monday. [More than $600,000 stolen from the campaign account of Va. Senate’s top Democrat] Wallis, also known as Lynn Wallis Miller, was charged with one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud stemming from three alleged fraud schemes, only one of them related to Saslaw’s campaign funds. She faces a maximum of 20 years in prison if convicted. Her lawyer, assistant federal public defender Todd Richman, declined to comment. The charges, filed in federal court in Alexandria, were announced by Dana J. Boente, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, and Paul M. Abbate, assistant director in charge of the FBI’s Washington field office. Wallis served as Saslaw’s campaign treasurer from June 2013 to September 2014. During that time, prosecutors allege, she had checks from the account totaling $653,000 made out to herself and two fake companies, Federal Legal Associates and the Straile Group. Wallis also used those companies, which she created with D.M., to defraud what is identified as “Company A” of $368,400, the information states. Finally, Wallis is accused of misusing funds from a nonprofit charitable organization, the Community College Consortium on Autism and Intellectual Disabilities. Wallis was executive director of the organization and D.M. was co-founder, the information states. Between April 2010 and April 2013, community colleges around the country contributed approximately $293,000 to the organization, and a Bulgarian businessman associated with D.M. donated $500,000 to it, according to the information. Wallis authorized about $482,000 in transfers from the organization’s account to other bank accounts that she and D.M. controlled, prosecutors allege. A “significant percentage” of that money was used for personal expenses such as mortgage payments, unspecified merchandise and restaurant meals, the information states. |