Woman sentenced to federal prison for defrauding Hurricane business

Topics:  Sandra Ball, Mountaineer 4x4

U.S. Attorney’s Office
Southern District of West Virginia
2 June 2015

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Huntington, W. Va. - Sandra Ball, 58, of Hurricane, West Virginia, was sentenced yesterday to three years in federal prison for defrauding her employer of nearly $450,000, United States Attorney Booth Goodwin announced. Chief United States District Judge Robert C. Chambers imposed the sentence.

From 2008 through 2013, while working as an auditor for Mountaineer 4x4, Ball made hundreds of Internet transactions in which she used her employer’s checking account to pay for personal items and expenses. She pleaded guilty to two felony counts of wire fraud in March 2015.

In addition to prison time, Ball was ordered to repay more than $445,000 to Mountaineer 4x4, a Hurricane business that deals in accessories for trucks and SUVs.

The case was prosecuted as part of U.S. Attorney Goodwin’s effort to combat employee theft from West Virginia businesses. The Hurricane Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation conducted the investigation. Assistant United States Attorney Erik S. Goes handled the prosecution.