A Maryland woman will serve six months of home confinement for her role in defrauding the government, including multiple trips to Disney.
Montana Samuels, Patch Staff
NATICK, MA — A Maryland woman who was hired for a "no show" job by a Natick Army employee will serve six months of home confinement after pleading guilty to defrauding the U.S. government over a period of four years, the U.S. Attorney's Office in Maryland said.
Chantelle Boyd, 53, of Woodsboro, Maryland, was sentenced to six months of home confinement followed by two years of supervised release. The government recommended a sentence of six months in prison.
Boyd will also be ordered to pay restitution in an amount to be determined at a later date, officials said.
In April 2023, Boyd pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy, 10 counts of theft of government funds and false declarations. Boyd was arrested and charged in July 2020 along with co-defendant Thomas Bouchard.
Bouchard also pleaded guilty to charges related to this case in April 2023. He was sentenced to a year and one day in prison in Aug. 2024.
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According to the charging documents, in 2014, Bouchard used his long-standing relationship with Evolution Enterprise, Inc., a government contractor, to have Boyd hired for a “no show” job as an assistant that specifically supported Bouchard.
Boyd’s position cost the Department of Defense more than $490,000 during her time at Evolution from 2014 to 2018, during which Boyd performed "little if any useful function," the U.S. Attorney's Office in Massachusetts said.
The duo took a number of government-funded trips during this time, which ranged in duration from two to 15 days. They shared a hotel room during these trips, officials noted.
A number of these trips were to Florida and other warm-weather areas, where, the U.S. Attorney said, they spent their days lounging by the pool or going to Disney parks.
"In order to conceal the personal nature of the trips, Bouchard altered, created and approved false travel to reimburse the Boyd for out-of-pocket expenses," officials said.
Additionally, Boyd made false statements to the grand jury in May 2018 in relation to these trips.
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