MILWAUKEE, Wis. (WTAQ) - Sue Sachdeva was sentenced Wednesday to 11 years in federal prison for embezzling $34 million from Milwaukee’s Koss Corporation.
Judge Lynn Adelman told her to start paying it back at $500 a month. The prison time is shorter than the 15 to 20 years sought by prosecutors, and it’s longer than the 7 years or less sought by the defense.
But attorney Michael Hart said both he and Sachdeva agreed the sentence was fair. She was a vice president of the stereo headphone manufacturer when she took money for lavish clothes, a Mercedes-Benz, luxury vacations, and home remodeling.
Sachdeva was arrested almost a year ago, and she later pleaded guilty. She cried as she admitted hurting her bosses, stockholders, fellow employees, and family.
Koss assembler Francene Davis said she had to borrow from her retirement fund because the embezzlement forced the company to drop its profit-sharing plan. Her husband Ramesh, a doctor at Milwaukee Children’s Hospital, filed for divorce last week.
The defense said she had bi-polar disorder, which caused her shopping sprees – and she was also an alcoholic.
Sachdeva will serve her term at the Dublin federal prison near Oakland California, close to where her parents live. But she’ll stay free for awhile, until she finishes testifying in civil cases related to the embezzlement.
Stockholders have sued Koss for not doing enough to protect its finances. Koss has sued its former auditor Grant Thornton, for not catching the embezzlement. And Sachdeva is suing American Express, for telling her bosses she was transferring company funds to pay her credit card bill.
Two accounting employees were fired along with Sachdeva, but they have not been charged.
