Former Columbus SunTrust teller latest sentenced in $24 million tax refund scam
A former Columbus bank teller was sentenced to more than three years in federal prison on Thursday for her role in the criminal conspiracy to steal money from the IRS in a $24 million tax return scam.
Tonya Alexander, who worked for SunTrust Bank in Columbus for 20 years, was sentenced to 37 months by U.S. District Court Judge Clay Land in the Columbus federal courthouse.
Alexander, 45, was indicted in May and charged with one count of conspiracy to commit theft of public money and 10 counts of theft of public money. She pleaded guilty to the theft of public money charge and the others were dismissed by Land as part of a plea agreement. Land’s sentence was at the bottom end of the federal sentencing guidelines, which called for 37 months to 46 months.
Alexander did not address the court when Land gave her the opportunity. Her attorney, Jennifer Curry, told the court that Alexander approached the sentencing with a “heavy heart.”
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