KINGMAN, Ariz. - A former Kingman employee who pleaded guilty to embezzling more than $1 million from the city since 2007 has been sentenced to more than nine years in prison.
Prosecutors say 60-year-old Diane Richards will be on seven years of probation after serving her 9.25-year prison term, must pay full restitution to the city and forfeit her state retirement benefits.
Richards pleaded guilty to four counts of felony theft in August.
She was Kingman's budget analyst and interim finance director until she was fired in November 2015 after authorities served search warrants at her home and City Hall.
Special agents with the Attorney General's Office and ICE Homeland Security Investigations began investigating Richards in September 2015 after banks reported unusual activity involving her accounts.
Richards was arrested in January 2016.
