Newport Woman Pleads Guilty to Defrauding Condo Associations in NH

A 38-year-old Newport woman could face decades in prison and nearly $3 million in fines after pleading guilty in United States District Court today to defrauding about 27 vacation condo associations in New Hampshire.

Courtney Stone, 38, of Newport, entered her plea in U.S. District Court in New Hampshire to five counts of wire fraud and one count of corruptly impeding the due administration of tax laws.

U.S. Attorney John P. Kacavas said that Stone’s scheme focused on condo associations in the Waterville Valley area, a popular skiing destination.

Kacavas said Stone’s employer provided property management services to the condo associations and Stone counterfeited Internal Revnue Service documents “in an effort to convince third parties to release her funds that the third parties were holding on behalf of Stone’s employer, which the IRS had levied to satisfy her employer’s tax debt.”

Stone faces up to three years in prison for the tax related charge. Each of the wire fraud charges carries a maximum sentence of 20 years and a fine of $250,000.

The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Bedford Field Office along with the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration and the Waterville Valley Police Department.