FORMER ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT OF MOBERLY CHAMBER OF COMMERCE IS SENTENCED TO FEDERAL PRISON FOR EMBEZZLEMENT

St. Louis, Missouri: Christina Finney was sentenced to 12 months and one day in prison on wire fraud charges involving the embezzlement of $60,780 from the Moberly Chamber of Commerce, United States Attorney Catherine L. Hanaway announced today.

"Ms. Finney chose to use Chamber of Commerce funds to pay her personal expenses," said Hanaway. "To cover up this embezzlement, she failed to pay insurance policy premiums, as well as the IRS for taxes due from the Chamber of Commerce. The insurance policies were on the Chamber of Commerce building and covered employee embezzlements. By not paying these premiums, the Chamber of Commerce had no insurance and directly suffered the entire loss of $60,780. Thanks to the cooperative efforts of the Moberly Police Department and the Kirksville FBI, Ms. Finney will have to repay the Chamber of Commerce for the money she stole from them."

Finney was employed by the Moberly Missouri Area Chamber of Commerce as an administrative assistant from August 2000 to January 2007. During this time Finney wire transferred approximately $60,780 of Chamber of Commerce funds to pay her personal bills, including monthly home mortgage payments, telephone bills and extra salary payments to herself.

CHRISTINA FINNEY, Paris, Missouri, pled guilty last June to one felony count of wire
fraud and appeared today for sentencing before United States District Judge Carol E.
Jackson in St. Louis. Hanaway commended the work performed on the case by the Kirksville Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Moberly Police Department and First Assistant United States Attorney Michael W. Reap, who handled the case for the U.S. Attorney's Office.