Kinde Durkee likely to plead guilty in $8M embezzlement caset
Source: Politico
Kinde Durkee, the California political operative at the heart of a major embezzlement scandal, is expected to plead guilty later this week to stealing more than $8 million from her clients, including Sen. Dianne Feinstein and other California Democrats, according to sources close to the case.
The stunning amount of money that Durkee took makes it the biggest such embezzlement case in U.S. election history and one that will have impact far down the line on the California ticket this fall.
Federal prosecutors will recommend that Durkee, who will also plead guilty to at least five counts of fraud, be sentenced to from 11 to 14 years in prison, the sources added.
None of the money that Durkee allegedly diverted has been recovered at this time. Durkee reportedly used the funds to cover a wide variety of personal expenses, including her mother’s stay at a seniors’ home, mortgage payments, payroll for her own company, tickets to the Los Angeles Dodgers and “Ariel’s Grotto” at Disneyland, and veterinarian bills, as well as credit card and cell phone costs.
Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0312/74567.html
The LA Times also has a good story on this:
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-kinde-durkee-20120329,0,4626563.story
