Former Office Manager Sentenced to Two and a Half Years in Federal Prison for Embezzling over $1 Million from a Family-Owned Business in Greenfield

Press Release

INDIANAPOLIS- Jennifer Lynn Horton., 49, of Shepherdsville, Kentucky has been sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, followed by one year of supervised release after pleading guilty to two counts of wire fraud.

According to court documents, between 2011 and 2022, Jennifer Horton worked as the office manager for a family-owned contracting company located in Greenfield, Indiana. In that role, Horton was responsible for managing payroll, customer invoices, and company credit cards.

Beginning around January 2016, and continuing through December 2022, Horton devised and executed multiple schemes to brazenly defraud her employer of over a million dollars. First, by inflating her salary on 466 separate occasions, for a total of $515,000, without approval. In addition, in December 2020, Horton added her husband to the company's payroll even though he had not been hired as a salaried employee. During that time, Horton stole an additional $107,000 under the guise of her husband's name.

To conceal her conduct, Horton edited the company's payroll data to make it appear that she was being paid her agreed-upon salary and to delete the payments to her husband. After the edited data was approved, Horton reverted the payroll system to make the unauthorized payments to herself and her husband. Horton misled her boss about the company's financial reports, resulting in significant financial strain on the company when the true information was discovered.

Horton also redirected credit card payments made by the company's customers into her own personal bank account over 185 times. She concealed the theft by altering the company's accounting records to delete invoices or falsely mark them as being paid in full to the company.

Finally, Horton abused the company credit card to pay personal bills and make personal purchases, including a house, cars, and clothes. In total, Horton stole approximately $1,116,258 from her employer.

In addition to her prison sentence, the court ordered the forfeiture of her interest in four vehicles-a 2022 Ford F350, a 2022 Ford Mustang, a 2021 Ford Mustang, and a 2020 Ford EcoSport-and that she pay a judgment of $1,002,2680.

"This criminal abused her friendships and position of trust to swindle a family-owned company out of over a million dollars," said Zachary A. Myers, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Indiana. "Family entrepreneurs are a critical driver of our economy, and fraud schemes against them harm those companies, their employees, and our community as a whole, and this serious federal prison sentence should send the message that this conduct will not be tolerated. My thanks to our partners in Hancock County and at the FBI for ensuring that there is accountability for economic crimes."

"Holding individuals accountable for financial crimes like this is essential to protecting the integrity of our businesses and communities," said Hancock County Prosecutor Brent Eaton. "This case serves as a reminder that accountability for the defendant and justice for the victim are crucial in preventing fraud. I would like to thank the dedicated staff of the Hancock County Prosecutor's Office and Sheriff's Department, the FBI, the U.S. Attorney's Office, and Detective Douglas Cook for their exceptional work and collaboration on this case."

The Federal Bureau of Investigation investigated this case, with valuable assistance provided by the Hancock County Prosecutor's Office and the Hancock County Sheriff's Department. The sentence was imposed by U.S. District Judge James R. Sweeney II

U.S. Attorney Myers thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Corbin Houston, who prosecuted this case.

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Updated January 10, 2025