Acting United States Attorney Steven Russell announced that Kimberley Kaye Brummett, 59, of Elkhorn, Nebraska, was sentenced today by United States District Court Judge John M. Gerrard to a five-year term of imprisonment following her conviction for two counts of wire fraud. After she completes her prison sentence, Brummett will serve three years on supervised release. There is no parole in the federal system.
Brummett was a financial controller for Taste Traditions, a manufacturer of food products for organizations such as schools and for retail. Taste Traditions was acquired by Wald Family Foods in 2012. Both before and after it was acquired by Wald Family Foods, Brummett worked out of a Taste Traditions plant in Omaha, Nebraska. Wald Family Foods is owned by TOBA, Inc., a company headquartered in Grand Island, Nebraska. After the acquisition, Brummett’s new role entailed her working as the controller for three manufacturing facilities owned by Wald Family Foods, including the Taste Traditions facility located in Omaha. Brummett continued working for Taste Traditions until October 10, 2019, when her position was absorbed by TOBA, Inc.
Both before and after the acquisition, Brummett was engaged in a scheme to defraud Taste Traditions. GIX Logistics, Inc. is a business located in Grand Island that coordinates trucking services for companies. They provided services to TOBA, Inc. and Taste Traditions. Brummett was not associated with and has not worked for GIX Logistics, Inc. Brummett opened an account with Centris Federal Credit Union in Omaha under her name and doing business as “GIX Logistics,” but omitted the “Inc.” that is used by the real “GIX Logistics.” In the forms Brummett completed when she opened the account, the business was listed as a sole proprietorship owned by Brummett. Taste Traditions and Wald Family Foods did not enter into any contract to obtain products or services from the GIX Logistics entity created by Brummett and none were provided. Between 2013 and 2019, Brummett submitted numerous false invoices under the “GIX Logistics” name. Taste Traditions would then issue checks to pay the phony invoices and Brummett deposited those checks into the fake GIX Logistics account she created. Between 2013 and the end of her employment in 2019, Taste Traditions paid out a total of $1,666,128.13 to Brummett’s fictitious company. As part of her sentence, Judge Gerrard also ordered Brummett to pay restitution in that amount.
During the sentencing hearing, Judge Gerrard discussed how Congress and the United States Sentencing Commission have expressed a clear intent to punish white-collar offenders with prison sentences.
This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Nebraska State Patrol.
United States Attorney Susan Lehr announced that the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of Nebraska has become aware of an Impersonation Scam using Ms. Lehr’s name, image, and title to attempt to defraud victims via email. On May 15, 2024, the U.S. Attorney’s Office received several calls from concerned citizens regarding emails they received purporting to be from United States Attorney Lehr. U.S. Attorney’s Office personnel quickly determined this was a scam and directed callers to report the scam to the FBI Tip Line www.ic3.gov and FTC Fraud Line https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/. None of the callers suffered a financial loss related to the scam.
If you receive an email demanding payment to the US Attorney’s Office, do not open any attachments, or respond providing any personal information. Please submit a report to the FBI at www.ic3.gov and https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/.
According to Ms. Lehr, “the only time the U.S. Attorney’s Office is involved in the collection of money is for restitution purposes in a criminal case after a judicial finding.”
“Scammers are experts at manipulation; they carry out various phone or email scams with unsuspecting victims. In this case they posed as a United States government official. We are grateful to the citizens who brought this our attention and that no one suffered any loss in this scheme. I would encourage the public to continue to exercise their due diligence when solicited for funds by emails or phone to report any suspicious activity to law enforcement.”
You can find additional information related to some common scams below.
How To Avoid a Government Impersonation Scam. Scammers pretend to be from government agencies like the FTC, Social Security Administration, and IRS — or say they’re calling about your Medicare benefits. They contact you and say that, if you don’t pay or give them your personal information, something bad will happen. Or maybe you’ll miss out on some government benefit. But it’s a scam. Learn the signs and avoid the scam.
Here are some other examples of government impersonation scams:
Scammers impersonate “the national consumer protection agency.” They might say they’re from the non-existent National Sweepstakes Bureau or another made-up agency. If you’re in doubt, check out the list of real federal agencies at usa.gov.
Scammers impersonate your local sheriff’s office or a court official. They might say there’s a warrant out for your arrest and that you’ll go to jail if you don’t pay immediately. Or that they’re from the local court and you need to pay a penalty for missing jury duty. This is most likely a scam. But if you’re worried, look up the real number for the government agency or office the caller mentioned. Then contact them directly to get the real story.
Scammers impersonate representatives of immigration authorities. They might say they’re calling from the United States Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) or another agency, there’s a problem with an immigration application or petition, and you have to pay them to solve that issue. This is a scam. If you’re concerned, contact USCIS directly. Also read Avoid Immigration Scams and Get Real Help.
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Michael G. Hymes, 40, of Omaha, Nebraska, was sentenced today for bank robbery. United States District Judge Robert F. Rossiter, Jr. sentenced Hymes to 12 years’ imprisonment. He was also ordered to pay $2,950 in restitution for money not recovered. Hymes, who has two prior convictions for bank robbery, will serve a three-year term of supervised release following his release from the Bureau of Prisons. There is no parole in the federal prison system.
On July 15, 2019, Hymes entered the Creighton Federal Credit Union, dressed as a female wearing a long- haired wig, flip-flops, and carrying a purse. He verbally demanded money from the teller and claimed he had a bomb, but none was shown. He was able to leave the bank with $4,017.00. He got into a car that was tracked and followed into Council Bluffs, Iowa. Officers found the vehicle approximately a half hour after the robbery and Hymes’s disguise was found in it.
This case was investigated by the Omaha Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Great Plains Violent Crime Task Force, comprised of FBI agents, Omaha Police Department detectives, Nebraska State Patrol Investigators and Papillion Police Department Detectives.
United States Attorney Joe Kelly announced that Wild Willy’s Fireworks, LLC (“Wild Willy’s”), a corporation with its principal office in Springfield, Nebraska, was sentenced in federal court today in Omaha for Falsifying Records in a Federal Investigation. United States District Judge Brian C. Buescher sentenced Wild Willy’s to three years of probation and a $35,000 fine. Wild Willy’s, through its representative and owner, Dan Williams, pleaded guilty to the crime on August 21, 2019.
On January 17, 2017, an Occupational Safety and Health Administration (“OSHA”) inspector traveled to Wild Willy’s facility in Springfield to conduct a workplace inspection. Dan Williams was not present when the inspector arrived. The inspector was not permitted to enter the Wild Willy’s facility. Williams spoke with the inspector over the telephone and agreed that the inspector would return the next day on January 18, 2017. Williams then traveled to the facility and instructed employees to perform tasks in preparation for the inspection. Williams contacted a forklift operator trainer to conduct forklift training for individuals at Wild Willy’s.
When the forklift trainer arrived, Williams advised him that there was insufficient time to perform the forklift training. Williams instructed the trainer to complete certificates for four individuals stating that each of them received the forklift training. The trainer completed certificates for the four individuals. Each of the certificates were back dated to September 28, 2015. Although each of the certificates indicated that forklift training occurred on September 28, 2015, none of the individuals received forklift training on that date.
On January 18, 2017, an OSHA representative requested copies of the forklift training certificates. An employee of Wild Willy’s emailed OSHA copies of the falsified certificates. Each of the certificates falsely represented that the individuals listed received forklift training on September 28, 2015.
The case was investigated by the United States Department of Labor - Office of Inspector General.
