CHEYENNE, Wyo. (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced a former Guernsey town treasurer to two years in prison for failing to pay taxes on money she has admitted to embezzling from the town.
U.S. District Judge Alan B. Johnson ordered U.S. Marshals to take Leslie Diane Zynda, 39, into custody immediately after the sentencing hearing in Cheyenne.
Johnson ordered Zynda to repay Guernsey more than $276,000. He also ordered her to pay the IRS more than $75,000 in unpaid taxes on the embezzled money.
Prosecutors said the embezzlement started in 2005 and stopped after current Guernsey Mayor Edward Delgado was elected in 2010 and started scrutinizing the books.
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Speaking after the hearing, Delgado said he started looking into the city deposits after he took office. He said it soon became apparent that Zynda, who served as both town treasurer and clerk, wasn't depositing all the money collected by the town's utility department. He said he alerted the town's attorney, Ed Buchanan.
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Zynda told Johnson that she was driven to take the money by personal circumstances including her husband becoming ill. "I was acting as the main person of the family, trying to hold everything together," she said.
Zynda said she used the money on personal expenses as well as to help other family members.
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