Crime

Stephanie Barnes Sentenced to Over Three Years in Prison

ST. CROIX — District Court Judge Robert Molloy on Friday sentenced former government contractor Stephanie Barnes to 44 months in prison for her involvement in a scheme to embezzle funds from programs receiving government funds, conversion of government property, and filing a false tax return. The U.S. Department of Justice filed a 19-page sentencing memorandum last month, justifying the need for a 3.75-year sentence for Ms. Barnes, which is above the basic guideline calculations. This variance was requested to account for Barnes’s conviction for violating Virgin Islands tax law and to maintain parity between offenders in the Virgin Islands and the mainland. Prosecutors detailed how Barnes and co-defendant Anne Golden embezzled funds from the VI Casino Control Commission. Their scheme involved no-bid contracts, underwriting Barnes’s doctoral studies, and cash reimbursements for personal expenditures. Barnes also falsified a tax form to understate her 2016 income, significantly reducin...