A Nevada woman was sentenced in U.S. District Court in Richmond today to four and a half years in prison for duping investors who were hoping to finance college educations out of $1.3 million.
Linda Palmer Taylor, 62, of Henderson pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and was facing a sentence of 51 to 63 months under federal sentencing guidelines when she appeared before U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson.
Taylor?s partner in the scheme, Edward Thomas Menster, 58, of Henrico County pleaded guilty in December to the same charge and was sentenced in March to nearly five years in prison and ordered to make restitution to eight investors.
Taylor, who has an MBA and no criminal record, and Menster sold $1.6 million worth of annuities from 2004 though 2009 through two companies, College Funding Associates and the College Dream Foundation.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Jamie L. Mickelson told Hudson that most of the victims came to Taylor, who had been involved in the college financial planning business, seeking advice on how to pay for college for their children.
?They trusted her implicitly,? Michelson told Hudson. Instead, she abused their trust, took their money and ?recklessly used it for her own personal gain.?
Some of the victims took out home equity loans to make the investments and at least one lost their retirement savings.
Taylor and Menster recommended investments in the annuities they were selling, falsely claiming the funds were guaranteed by the FDIC. Instead of being invested, Taylor and Menster used the money to pay themselves and to finance other businesses.
In all some $1.6 million was invested of which only $300,000 was recovered resulting in a $1.3 million loss.
Taylor?s lawyer, Jeffrey L. Everhart, said that in the beginning Taylor had no intention of committing fraud. ?Things deteriorated, things got out of hand,? he said.
Hudson, however, said she continued to solicit investments and to lull investors all the while knowing the money promised could not be repaid. ?You have betrayed the trust of many, many people,? Hudson told Taylor.
Shortly before she was sentenced, Taylor apologized for her conduct and promised to repay the money. ?I know I?ve done wrong and I take full responsibility,? she said.
(This has been a breaking news update. Check back for more details as they become available. Read more in tomorrow's Richmond Times-Dispatch.)
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