Woman sentenced for embezzlement

A Woodbridge woman was sentenced Friday to serve 18 months in federal prison for embezzling more than $500,000 from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

Karen L. Parish, 39, of Woodbridge, pleaded guilty in August to conspiracy to commit wire fraud for the scheme.

She was also ordered to pay $527,478.55 in restitution.

According to court documents, Parish was employed as a financial analyst for the PTO from 1990 to 2005 and was responsible for managing an account in which PTO customers deposited funds to cover expenses related to filing patent and trademark applications. Customers could request refunds of the money they deposited and Parish was responsible for giving them those refunds, prosecutors said.

Prosecutors said that between May 1998 and September 2005, Parish deposited money into her own accounts and accounts of her co-conspirator, Michael Reid, disguising them as customer refunds.

The pair stole $534,338.55 from the PTO through the scheme, according to the court documents.

Reid of Fort Washington, Md.,  also pleaded guilty in August for his role in the scheme and was sentenced to serve 18 months in prison.

Staff writer Amanda Stewart can be reached at 703-878-8014.