Tower woman sentenced for embezzling $300k from clients
(US Air Force)
A Tower woman has been sentenced to 2 years and 4 months in prison for embezzling over $300,000 from clients.
58-year-old Jeana Lautigar owned and operated a payroll service headquartered in St. Louis Park, managing payroll for small businesses. According to court documents, Lautigar embezzled funds from her clients’ bank accounts and used the money to cover personal expenses or to pay back money to other clients she had previously embezzled from. This happened on multiple occasions from 2016 to 2020.
In total, Lautigar embezzled $344,813 over five years. Additionally, she failed to report the embezzled income in her taxes.
In September, Lautigar pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court. In February, she was sentenced by Judge Donovan W. Frank. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Robert Lewis and Esther Soria prosecuted the case.
In addition to 28 months in prison, Lautigar will have to pay back nearly $430,000 in restitution.
This case is a result of an IRS investigation.