ST. PAUL — A Tower woman has been sentenced to prison for embezzling nearly $350,000 from small businesses that hired her to provide accounting and payroll services.
Jeana Lautigar-McGowan, 58, received the 28-month term from Senior U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank last week after pleading guilty to money laundering and tax charges.
“Lautigar-McGowan repeatedly prioritized her own financial ends at the expense of her trusting clients,” prosecutor Robert Lewis told the court. “These were not large, wealthy corporations. They were small, mom-and-pop businesses whose fiscal survival is never fully assured from year to year.
“And her actions were not a one-time mistake,” Lewis said. “Far from it. She spent years defrauding others out of hundreds of thousands of dollars, including more than two dozen of her clients and all honest fellow citizen taxpayers — all while a licensed financial professional.”
Lautigar-McGowan operated the Twin Cities-based Edina Business Solutions, Inc. and Jeana Lautigar CPA, Inc.
Court documents say the thefts spanned five years and impacted at least 25 clients, with Lautigar-McGowan using her access to their bank accounts to conduct transfers in amounts appearing consistent with their payroll.
She used funds “for her own purposes and to support her lifestyle,” prosecutors told the court, with one client losing more than $100,000. In some cases, filings said, she would also use one client’s money to reimburse what she took from another client.
“In the end, her crimes were clearly motivated by selfishness and greed,” Lewis wrote, “committed because she merely wanted to elevate herself to greater riches than she already had.”
Authorities said the embezzlement totaled $344,813 between 2016-20, with Lautigar-McGowan also failing to pay $84,746 in federal taxes on the stolen income.
She was ordered to repay $429,559 in restitution and will be subject to three years of supervised release.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office sought a guideline 30-month prison term, while defense attorney Craig Cascarano argued for a probationary sentence.
Cascarano called the case a “significantly low figure” for prosecution in federal court, noting Lautigar-McGowan could expect to receive a probationary sentence if it was handled in state court.
He said his client struggles with mental illness, which led to alcohol abuse, and noted that a large portion of her proceeds were used in an ill-advised attempt to invest in the stock market.
“The court can readily conclude that Ms. Lautigar continues to suffer significant mental health issues,” Cascarano wrote. “The court can also conclude and hope that as a result of Ms. Lautigar’s alcohol treatment, she understands the destructive nature of alcohol and hopefully will continue to be clean and sober.”
Tom Olsen covers crime and courts and the 8th Congressional District for the Duluth News Tribune since 2013. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth and a lifelong resident of the city. Readers can contact Olsen at 218-723-5333 or tolsen@duluthnews.com.