[Archived] Defendants Sentenced For Theft From Alexandria Fire Department

For Immediate Release: June 30, 2017

On June 29, 2017, Monique Jackson Asante, a 49-year-old resident of Woodbridge, Virginia, was sentenced for the theft of over $200,000 from the Alexandria Fire Department in a complex fraud case. Ms. Jackson Asante received a sentence of 15 years in prison, with 14 years of that sentence suspended upon the following conditions: 10 years of good behavior, three years of supervised probation, and the payment of $219,000 in restitution. Jackson Asante previously pleaded guilty on August 18, 2016, to one felony count of Money Laundering.

Additionally, five co-conspirators have been convicted as a result of this investigation:

• Corey King pleaded guilty to four felony counts of Grand Larceny by False Pretense and one felony count of Conspiracy to Commit Grand Larceny. King received a sentence of five years, with all but 18 months suspended, conditioned upon five years good behavior, three years of supervised probation and the payment of over $74,000 in restitution.
• Jamarr Martin pleaded guilty to one felony count of Conspiracy to Commit Grand Larceny. Martin received a sentence of three years, with all but 30 days suspended, conditioned upon five years of good behavior, two years of supervised probation, and the payment of $3,400 in restitution.
• Isaac Pardie was found guilty by a jury of one felony count of Grand Larceny by False Pretense and one felony count of Conspiracy. The jury recommended a sentence of a $201 fine. He was also ordered to pay $4,400 in restitution.
• James Little pleaded guilty to five felony counts of Grand Larceny by False Pretense and one felony count of Conspiracy to Commit Grand Larceny; he will be sentenced on July 20, 2017.
• Shantell Sims has pleaded guilty to one felony count of Conspiracy to Commit Grand Larceny and will be sentenced on August 10, 2017.

The evidence establishes that Ms. Jackson Asante, a former fire department employee, processed fraudulent invoices falsely alleging that Little, King, Martin, Pardie, and Sims were vendors providing materials and services to the fire department. Based upon these invoices, the City issued checks to the co-conspirators. These checks were cashed and the proceeds split with Jackson Asante. Between 2010 and 2016, the co-conspirators obtained over $200,000 from fraudulent checks.

The investigation began when a co-conspirator contacted the Fire Department and reported that Jackson Asante was submitting false invoices to have checks issued to her friends and family members. A review of checks issued to fire department vendors uncovered the names of Jackson Asante’s co-conspirators. Ms. Jackson Asante decided to provide detailed information about the scheme to investigators and to cooperate against her co-conspirators.  

The case was investigated by Detective Sang Pak of the Alexandria Police Department. The police investigation relied heavily on the assistance of the City’s Office of Internal Audit. Senior Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney David Lord and Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Erin Earp prosecuted the matter on behalf of the Commonwealth.

Commonwealth's Attorney Bryan Porter said: “A complex criminal scheme to steal significant amounts of money is a serious crime. It is exponentially more serious when an employee steals from her employer, and made worse yet again when the theft is committed by a public employee. In effect, the co-conspirators in this case stole from Alexandria taxpayers.”

“The excellent investigative work by the Alexandria Police Department is to be commended. I want to stress that these convictions could not have been secured without the help of the City’s Office of Internal Audit, which helped us piece together the scheme and compile the necessary documentary evidence to prosecute the matter. The work of these tireless public servants is illustrative of the zeal with which we will pursue the theft of City money.”

“I am exceptionally pleased that the co-conspirators have been ordered to pay a total of over $200,000 in restitution to the City.”

Jackson Asante and King are currently serving their sentences in the William G. Truesdale Alexandria Adult Detention Center.