A federal judge has sentenced a former Palm Beach County firefighter who was convicted in February of defrauding a local cystic fibrosis charity to 18 months in prison.
During an April 6 hearing, U.S. District Judge Donald M. Middlebrooks imposed concurrent prison terms for Elizabeth Genna Suarez, who was found guilty at trial in February on three of four counts of wire fraud.
The prison term is to be followed by two years of probation. Middlebrooks issued the sentence after ruling that Suarez lied on the witness stand and submitted false character letters to the court.
Suarez, 34, is scheduled to surrender to federal officials in December, court records show.
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Woman once was Palm Beach County Fire Rescue firefighter, EMT
Federal prosecutors alleged that she stole more than $150,000 from the Piper’s Angels Foundation, a North Palm Beach-based nonprofit founded in 2016 to provide assistance to cystic fibrosis patients and their families.
Suarez at one time was married to the charity’s founder and CEO, was a member of its board of directors and performed its bookkeeping duties. She also worked as a Palm Beach County Fire Rescue firefighter and EMT from March 2019 until her resignation this past November.
Money spent on cosmetic surgery, car repairs, sunglasses
Federal prosecutors filed charges against Suarez in December, alleging that she falsified comments in a bookkeeping program to make it appear that withdrawals she made were for legitimate business purposes.
In reality, prosecutors said, Suarez was using charity funds for personal use, including spending for cosmetic surgery, improvements to her car and items such as sunglasses.
In July 2019, she used the foundation’s corporate credit card to make an $8,000 deposit on a cosmetic surgical procedure, to pay $1,680 for a cosmetic laser procedure and she spent $800 on a necklace, prosecutors said.
In all, she misappropriated $158,960, prosecutors said.
Suarez provided restitution for the full amount and acknowledged that she acted alone, Piper’s Angels Foundation board president Paul Smolchek said in a letter to foundation members in December.
She was also given a lifetime ban from the organization.