ANSON, Maine — It was sentencing day on Friday for the former Anson tax collector, convicted last month of embezzling more than $500,000 in excise tax money from the Anson Town Office.
The state says Claudia Viles was pocketing about $100,000 each year between 2009 and 2014, but she stood up in court Friday and maintained her innocence. She says she didn’t do it.
In June, a jury convicted the 66-year-old of felony theft and a dozen misdemeanors for tax evasion.
Prosecutors say Viles stole half a million dollars in excise taxes while serving as tax collector for the town of Anson.
The defense and her supporters painted Viles as a wonderful, generous person.
Ultimately the judge sentenced her to five years in prison and ordered her to pay over $500,000 in restitution to the town.
“She really has distinguished herself in terms of the amount of money she took, the amount of time she took it and the fact she may have been stealing the people’s money since 1982,” Leanne Robbin, assistant attorney general, said.
“We intend to appeal the case. Claudia has asserted her innocence from day one and she’ll continue to do that all the way through her appeal,” defense attorney Walt McKee said.
Viles is free on bail, and is expected to remain free throughout the appeals process.