Two Atlanta women stole $10 million from Amazon: How the scheme worked

An Atlanta woman who participated in a scam with her partner that defrauded Amazon of nearly $10 million was sentenced to 16 years and three months in prison on September 2, the U.S. Department of Justice announced. How the fraudulent scheme worked is described. New York Post.

The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Georgia said Brittany Hudson received the sentence after she and her partner used their business relationship with Amazon to embezzle funds from the online retailer.

In March, Hudson pleaded guilty to 30 felony counts, including wire fraud, money laundering, conspiracy charges, and a count of forging a federal judge's signature.

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"Hudson and her romantic partner orchestrated a massive fraud scheme against Amazon and stole nearly $10 million in just a few months," said U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg.

"Hudson, already out on bail, demonstrated a complete disregard for the law by forging a federal judge's signature in a failed attempt to defraud another company. This is a serious sentence that she should serve without the possibility of parole," he added.

According to the US Department of Justice, from January 2022 to June 2022, Hudson and her partner, Keirika Wortham, operated a scheme involving fictitious suppliers and fake invoices they created in Amazon's supplier system.

Wortham and another accomplice within Amazon approved fake supplier profiles, which allowed them to submit invoices.

Hudson and Wortham then submitted over 1000 fictitious invoices, falsely claiming that nonexistent suppliers had provided Amazon with goods and services. Wortham approved these invoices, after which Amazon transferred approximately $9,4 million to bank accounts controlled by Hudson, Wortham, and their co-conspirators.

They spent the proceeds on expensive real estate and luxury cars, including a nearly $1 million house in Smyrna, as well as a 2019 Lamborghini Urus, a 2021 Dodge Durango, a 2022 Tesla Model X, a 2018 Porsche Panamera, and a Kawasaki ZX636 motorcycle.

In September 2022, both defendants were indicted on federal charges related to the scheme. While out on bail, they attempted another fraud by entering into an agreement with a franchise company to open a hookah bar in Midtown Atlanta and claiming their criminal charges had been dropped.

These actions resulted in their pre-trial release being revoked and they were returned to custody.

To support their claims, they submitted forged court documents bearing the forged signatures of former Chief U.S. District Judge Timothy C. Batten Sr. and Cobb County Magistrate Judge Norman L. Barnett, who had previously served as the prosecutor in the case.

In addition, Hudson submitted false financial statements with inflated account balances to secure the deal.

"This conviction concludes this brazen fraud scheme with the expected outcome of years of imprisonment for those involved," said Rob Donovan, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service's Atlanta Field Office.

"Our agency will continue to consistently identify fraud, protect victims, and work with the U.S. Attorney's Office to bring criminals to justice," he added.

In addition to her prison sentence, Hudson was ordered to pay Amazon $9,469,731 in restitution. The court ordered the forfeiture of $7,859,136 in property and the seizure of her Smyrna home, as well as funds from bank accounts deemed to be proceeds of the scheme.

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Keirika Wortham received 16 years in prison in June 2023, followed by an additional year in March 2026, after pleading guilty to forging a federal judge's signature.

She was also ordered to pay $9,469,731 in restitution and forfeit more than $3 million in property, including her Smyrna home and vehicles.

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