A federal judge has sentenced a former NASA (web|news) accountant to one year in prison after she pleaded guilty to embezzling nearly $150,000 after six years on the run.

Prosecutors say 39-year-old Tracey Carpenter of Suitland was indicted in 2001 and was a fugitive until her arrest in November.

According to her plea, as an accountant at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Carpenter had access to NASA's accounting database to process payments to vendors. In 1997 and 1998, she took at least 10 payments totaling $148,321, altering invoices to make it look like vendors were being paid and doctoring records submitted to officials.

At sentencing Monday, U.S. District Judge Alexander Williams Jr. enhanced Carpenter's sentence for abuse of a position of trust.

Email To A Friend