NEWPORT NEWS, Va. — A former secretary at Langley Air Force Base has pleaded guilty to bilking the government out of nearly $1.5 million over 17 years.
Michelle Holt, a civilian secretary in the communications support squadron at Air Combat Command, pleaded guilty in federal court Wednesday to charges that she engaged in a long-running effort to boost her pay by faking the amount of overtime she worked.
The Virginian-Pilot reports that a statement of facts shows that between 2001 and 2018, Holt falsely claimed 42,847 overtime hours that she did not work — an astonishing 48.5 hours a week. The statement said she also falsified holiday and sick pay.
In 2017, for example, Holt’s salary was $51,324. But she took home $119,585 in overtime pay.
Holt faces up to 15 years in prison when she is sentenced in March, although prosecutors have promised to ask the judge to give Holt credit for cooperating with them.
Holt’s lawyer said Holt spent the money on “life and paying daily bills.”
