Key Figure Pleads Guilty to Mail Fraud

Deal Brings Prosecutions to an End

The last defendant facing trial in the D.C. tax case pleaded guilty yesterday to mail fraud and three other felony charges, bringing a chapter in the scandal to a close.

Jayrece Turnbull, a key figure in the embezzlement of nearly $50 million from the D.C. treasury and who is the niece of the scheme's mastermind, is likely to face about 10 years in prison when she is sentenced Feb. 4.

Appearing before U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams Jr. in Greenbelt, Turnbull, 34, also pleaded guilty to tax evasion, receipt of stolen property and conspiracy to commit money laundering. Prosecutors said more than $24 million in fraudulent checks, nearly half of the stolen money, flowed through Turnbull's accounts.

As part of her agreement with the government, Turnbull must surrender her home in Bowie, two homes in the Dominican Republic, a 2005 Mercedes-Benz ML350, designer handbags, fur hats, Versace china, jewelry, three plasma televisions and money held in 26 bank accounts.

With the plea yesterday, the D.C. tax scandal prosecutions, brought in the District and Maryland, will conclude without a trial. One defendant after another sized up the case assembled by federal authorities and concluded that going to trial was unwise. Law enforcement authorities said they do not expect to charge anyone else in connection with the scam.

Former tax office manager Harriette Walters, the ringleader, agreed to cooperate and pleaded guilty last month to charges that will probably land her in prison for 15 to 18 years.

Eleven people pleaded guilty in the case. Ten await sentencing, some in federal court in the District and others in the federal court in Greenbelt.

Brought into the scheme in 2000, Turnbull quickly became an important player in the fraud that her aunt had begun more than a decade before. Exploiting the lax controls in her office, Walters issued fraudulent property tax refund checks to friends and relatives who would cash the checks in exchange for a share of the payouts.

It was Turnbull who handled some of the biggest checks, several for more than $400,000, and it was Turnbull who unwittingly set in motion the investigation that would bring the fraud to light.

When a SunTrust Bank employee questioned Turnbull's authority to transfer $200,000 to a Bank of America account in June 2007, Turnbull fought back, hiring a lawyer and presenting forged documents in a bid to move the money. In court papers yesterday, prosecutors revealed that the problems with SunTrust created tension between Turnbull and Walters.

"After SunTrust Bank officials began making inquiry . . . Turnbull traveled to the Dominican Republic against the wishes of Harriette Walters," prosecutors wrote in a statement of facts. "Harriette Walters was extremely concerned about the potential of the scheme being discovered by bank officials and, upon Turnbull's return, reprimanded her for her unwillingness to accept responsibility for jeopardizing the scheme and for taking the necessary steps to address the problems at SunTrust Bank."

The bank called the FBI, touching off a major investigation that led to a string of arrests starting in November.

Now, prosecutors say, it is time for the defendants to pay.

"We have brought these conspirators to justice, and they will pay a heavy price for the harm they have caused to the District," said Jeffrey A. Taylor, U.S. attorney for the District, in a statement.

For Turnbull, the price could be steep. The maximum penalty for mail fraud, the most serious of the offenses, is 30 years. It is unlikely that Turnbull will receive anything close to the maximum on that or any of the other offenses. But under federal sentencing guidelines, she will probably face at least eight to 10 years on the four charges.

Although admitting guilt, Turnbull disputes a number of assertions in prosecutors' account of her role. Among the points of contention: whether Turnbull knew from the start that she wasn't entitled to any of the money from the checks, whether she had conversations with co-conspirators about the scheme, whether she willfully filed false tax returns and whether she lied during an interview with investigators. It will be up to the judge to resolve whatever disputed points figure in determining Turnbull's sentence.