Karen McGinnis, age 46, of Mountain Top, Pennsylvania, was sentenced on March 17 to 20 months in prison after being convicted of embezzling public funds, according to the United States Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.
McGinnis served as the tax collector for Fairview Township from March 2023 to January 2025. During this period, she was responsible for collecting property taxes from township residents on behalf of Fairview Township, Luzerne County, and the Crestwood School District. Authorities said McGinnis embezzled more than $400,000 by writing checks to herself from the tax collector bank accounts she controlled.
In addition to her prison sentence, United States District Judge Karoline Mehalchick ordered McGinnis to serve three years of supervised release and pay restitution totaling $367,088.35. Before her crime was discovered, McGinnis had repaid about $40,000 into the tax collector accounts.
Both Luzerne County and the Crestwood School District received over $10,000 in federal grants and other programs during the time frame when the theft occurred. The Internal Revenue Service’s Criminal Investigation Division led the investigation.
Following sentencing, Yury Kruty, Special Agent in Charge at IRS-Criminal Investigation Philadelphia Field Office said: “IRS–Criminal Investigation is essential in embezzlement cases, where complex financial trails require expert investigation.”
Assistant United States Attorney Kyle A. Moreno prosecuted the case.
