A former receptionist at a medical practice in Kearny will spend nearly three years in prison for embezzling more than $446,000 from her former employer, using fraudulent credit cards to obtain more than $200,000 in goods and services and evading taxes on that illegal income, U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman announced.
Gwendolyn Muller, 53, formerly of Kearny, was sentenced to 34 months in prison today in Newark federal court after pleading guilty in October to one count each of embezzlement, credit card fraud and tax evasion.
U.S. District Judge William J. Martini imposed the sentence today in court, and also sentenced Muller to three years of supervised release and ordered her to pay restitution of $556,000.
According to court documents and statements made in court, Muller used her position at the medical practice from 2007 through 2011 to take, cash, and conceal more than $446,000 in checks paid by insurance companies to the medical practice for services to patients.
Muller also fraudulently obtained 10 credit cards in the name of a principal of the medical practice and used those cards to charge more than $218,000 in goods and services -- a portion of which Muller paid for with embezzled funds, Fishman's said.
Muller additionally admitted to filing a false tax return to evade the payment of taxes on this illegally obtained income, according to documents filed in the case and statements made in court.
The investigation was headed up by special agents of the FBI, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Richard M. Frankel, and IRS-Criminal Investigation, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Jonathan D. Larsen.
Since 2010, the New Jersey U.S. Attorney's Office has recovered more than $635 million in health care fraud and government fraud settlements, judgments, fines, restitution and forfeiture under the False Claims Act, the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and other statutes.