The former financial coordinator of a Houston dental office will spend time in a federal prison after being sentenced in a scheme in which she stole nearly $250,000 from her employer, the U.S. Department of Justice announced.
Jennifer Lynn Thornton, 45, of Hockley, pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud July 20, 2023, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Texas Alamdar S. Hamdani announced in a news release Thursday. Hockley is 37 miles northwest of Houston.
Senior U.S. District Judge Kenneth M. Hoyt sentenced Thornton to three years and five months in federal prison, which will be followed immediately by three years of supervised release.
She also was assessed 10 $100 special assessments, the news release said, and restitution will be determined later.
During sentencing, the judge said: “I don’t believe you have proper respect for authority. The harm you caused to the victims was very personal.”
Thornton had been a financial coordinator in a dental office in Houston, working for a dentist who had been in business for 38 years.
As he prepared to retire in July 2021, the dentist began a detailed review of his company accounts and discovered Thornton had been stealing from him, authorities said. The dentist hired a private auditor, who identified $243,597 in losses.
Thornton had created a shell company called SGS Healthcare, officials said. As part of her scheme, she had payments that should have gone to the dental practice diverted to her shell company.
She also had checks from insurance companies that were made payable to the dental practice deposited into her own accounts, documents show. Authorities said she also manipulated company books so she could take cash she had received from patients.
Thornton was allowed to remain on bond but must voluntarily surrender to a U.S. Bureau of Prisons facility at a later date.
The U.S. Secret Service investigated the case with the Harris County Sheriff’s Office. Assistant U.S. Attorney Jay Hileman prosecuted it.
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