Berwyn Accountant Pleads Guilty to Embezzling More Than $130K

A Berwyn woman who was a senior accountant at the Illinois Medical District Commission pleaded guilty to embezzlement Nov. 23 for moving more than $130,000 into her personal accounts.

Cynthia Fernandez-Alonso, 42, was responsible for authorizing payments from the commission’s bank account to vendors and suppliers, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Northern District of Illinois.

She used her position to move payments from the commission’s bank account into three of her personal accounts, according to the plea agreement, and she recorded in internal records that those payments were made to an energy provider and other vendors.

Fernandez-Alonso moved these deposits into her accounts nearly every month from at least November 2013 to April 2015, and some months had more than one transfer, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

On Dec. 10, 2014, she received a deposit for $4,852, and her Chase debit card was used for a $2,847 purchase on that day at Kay Jewelers, according to the plea agreement.

A sentencing hearing is scheduled for 10 a.m. Feb. 22.

If convicted on the embezzlement charge, Fernandez-Alonso faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine, plus mandatory restitution.

“The Illinois Medical District Commission is a governmental agency that facilitates collaboration among the various medical, health and social service agencies operating within the Illinois Medical District on Chicago’s Near West Side,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.