A Lehigh Acres woman is going to spend 10 years in federal prison for a fraud scheme that netted her nearly $4.2 million.
As part of her sentence, U.S. District Judge Thomas P. Barber ordered 49-year-old Madelyn Hernandez to forfeit $4,199,498.42, the proceeds of the wire fraud.
She entered a guilty plea on January 28, 2025.
According to court documents, Hernandez was employed by a textile and apparel supply chain company and made false and fraudulent representations to the company to obtain money.
She submitted fraudulent invoices via email from purported fabric supply companies and directed payment be sent to bank accounts she controlled. She ran the scheme from 2018 to 2024.
According to court documents, while Hernandez was employed by a textile and apparel supply chain company, she made false and fraudulent representations to the company to obtain money. Hernandez submitted fraudulent invoices via email from purported fabric supply companies and directed payment be sent to bank accounts that she controlled.
As part of her scheme, Hernandez created and submitted false invoices purporting money due and owing to a fictitious company and another that was a defunct company for goods purportedly ordered and received.
As a result of her scheme, between 2018 and 2024, Hernandez received a total of $4,199,498.42 from her employer.
Hernandez’s fraud came to light after the owner of the company found discrepancies in the company’s financial records, including inventory discrepancies and falsified business records.
In June 2024, the company became aware that invoices, proof of delivery records, and inventory reports that Hernandez had submitted were fraudulent.
As the company was investigating and unraveling the fraudulent records, Hernandez sent a message to her employer from a purported family member stating that she had died after an illness and complications with surgery. The company contacted law enforcement.
In October 2024, agents with the FBI and IRS Criminal Investigation executed a search warrant at Hernandez’s residence.
Hernandez admitted to agents that she had emailed invoices to the company for payment and had used the money deposited into her account, held in a fictitious company name, for her own personal expenses and for gambling. Further, she admitted to sending the message to her employer stating that she had died.
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