An executive of the long defunct charter airline Direct Air was sentenced to nearly eight years in prison for illegally siphoning off millions of dollars paid by customers for future flights.
Former vice president Kay Ellison, 58, was convicted earlier this year of several counts of bank fraud and conspiracy to commit wire fraud.
Ellison was also ordered to pay $19.6 million in restitution by a U.S. District Judge in New Jersey.
"Kay Ellison stole tens of millions of dollars of passenger money in a brazen scheme that put a veneer of success on a failing company, and left others holding the bag – until today," said Brian Benczkowski, assistant attorney general for the criminal division.
Ellison was managing partner of Myrtle Beach Direct Air and Tours, which operated as Direct Air.
Former CEO Judy Tull, 73, was also convicted along with Ellison but will be sentenced at a later date.
Prosecutors said Ellison and Tull engaged in a scheme to unlawfully inflate the amount of funds held in escrow for customers’ future travel, causing two banks to lose nearly $30 million.
