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LAPLACE– Latanya A. Britton, 41, of LaPlace, Louisiana, was sentenced Jan. 7 for wire fraud. Judge Vitter sentenced Britton to probation for three years with the first six months as home incarceration. Additionally, Britton was ordered to pay full restitution to the victims and to complete 50 hours of community service.

In Jan. 2018, Britton was hired as a bookkeeper in the client accounting services department for an accounting firm located in New Orleans. A French Quarter restaurant was a small business client of the firm that was assigned to Britton. She was entrusted with daily accounting and bill paying including authorization to its bank account.  Britton was able to issue checks to vendors that contained the electronic signature of the managing shareholder.

In Aug. 2018, Britton established an entity named Lagniappe Accounting Services, L.L.C. (“Lagniappe”). Using the Lagniappe name, she opened bank account with Navy Federal Credit Union (“NFCU”), a domestic banking institution headquartered in Vienna, Virginia.

Britton devised and implemented a scheme to defraud the restaurant by embezzling approximately $32,000 from its bank account. Britton then tried to cover the theft by deleting approximately 31 check entries payable to Lagniappe in the software used by her employer. Britton used her NFCU Lagniappe account debit card to pay for personal expenses at retailers such as Bed Bath & Beyond, Dillard’s, JCPenney’s, Old Navy, DSW and at various nail spas. In an effort to conceal her conduct in Dec. 2018, Britton made false statements in an email to the client’s managing shareholder after he contacted her regarding a suspicious check written to Lagniappe. Britton was terminated from the accounting firm on Jan. 3, 2019.

U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser praised the work of the United States Secret Service. The prosecution of the case is being handled by Assistant U.S. Attorney Brian M. Klebba, Supervisor of the Financial Crimes Unit.