A longtime Philadelphia city employee was sentenced to nearly seven years in federal prison on Thursday for siphoning over $2 million from the public mental health clinic she ran.
Renee Tartaglione, 63, was convicted of 53 counts of conspiracy, fraud, theft and tax crimes on June 23, 2017.
She is the daughter of former Philadelphia city elections chief Marge Tartaglione, according to NBC 10. Her sister is long-serving Pennsylvania Democratic Sen. Christine Tartaglione. (RELATED: Nevada Judge Postpones Lethal Injection With Hours To Spare At Request Of Drug Company)
Renee Tartaglione drained money from the nonprofit Juniata Community Mental Health Clinic by charging excessive rent after moving the organization to buildings she owned. She and other employees, including members of the politically connected Acosta family, also accepted exorbitant checks for work they did not do, reported the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Tartaglione used the money for home renovations, a speedboat and even $14,000 worth of curtains and blinds between 2007 and 2012, reported the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Tartaglione’s husband, Carlos Matos, helped her run the mental health clinic. Matos, who is currently a Philadelphia ward leader, was sentenced to three years in federal prison for bribery in 2007, but he has not been indicted for any charges related to the clinic.
The clinic case brought down two members of the Acosta family. Former Philadelphia ward leader Sandy Acosta and her daughter, former Pennsylvania Democratic Rep. Leslie Acosta, became government witnesses against Tartaglione. Leslie Acosta was sentenced to seven months in prison earlier in July, and Sandy Acosta will be sentenced later in the summer, reported the Philadelphia Inquirer.
The Acostas said they turned over the money from the checks they cashed to Tartaglione while she was president of the clinic, reported the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Tartaglione will have to pay more than $4.7 million in financial penalties for her crimes.
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