Denver couple sentenced to federal prison for defrauding Department of Defense contractor

DENVER — A Denver couple was sentenced to federal prison after they defrauded a Department of Defense (DoD) contractor of $5 million, the U.S. Attorney's Office (USAO) for the District of Colorado announced Wednesday.

Kimberly Ann Tew, 43, and Michael Tew, 45, were convicted on Feb. 15 in connection with a wire fraud scheme that defrauded National Air Cargo , a logistics company and contractor for the DoD.

According to the USAO, in 2018, the couple submitted dozens of false invoices to National Air Cargo for services and items that were never provided. For two years, the Tews, with the help of a co-conspirator, reportedly defrauded the company of $5 million.

The USAO said the couple gambled away much of the money. They also reportedly spent $2.4 million buying cryptocurrencies at cryptocurrency ATMs across the Denver area.

In addition to the fraud, the USAO said Michael failed to file federal income tax returns for tax years 2016 and 2019 on both his earned income and funds obtained through the scheme.

"The Tews enriched themselves by exploiting the trust of an employer, and they deserve every day of these sentences," said Acting United States Attorney for the District of Colorado Matt Kirsch in a statement. "We are grateful to our partners at IRS-CI and the FBI for their help in bringing them to justice."

Kimberly Ann was sentenced on Aug. 8 to 48 months in prison and ordered to pay a forfeiture money judgment of more than $5 million. She was also ordered to pay more than $5 million in restitution and a $35,000 fine.

Michael was sentenced on Tuesday to 42 months in prison and ordered to pay a forfeiture money judgment of more than $5 million. He was also ordered to pay more than $5 million in restitution and a $100,000 fine.