The recent sentencing of a Texas woman to federal prison demonstrates how important it is for roofing contractors to pay close attention to their financial records.

According to a release from the U.S. Department of Justice, Judy Green of Baytown, Texas, was sentenced on Nov. 30 to two years imprisonment on charges related to stealing $3 million from Liqua Tech, a Houston-based roofing, waterproofing and sheet metal company.

Green, 55, pleaded guilty in April to wire fraud. She admitted to embezzling millions from Liqua Tech over a 10-year period. The Department of Justice states she worked as an account manager for the company, using her position to submit fraudulent invoices to induce payment from the company and pocketing the funds to use on personal expenses.

The scheme unraveled when one of the business owners noticed a large payment to an unknown credit card in the summer of 2022. A subsequent audit revealed Green’s fraudulent activities had been happening since 2012.

According to reporting from the Houston Chronicle, Green was hired in 1994 to Liqua Tech and was often the only manager of the company’s accounts payable. She was fired in July 2022.

U.S. District Judge Alfred Bennett ordered Green to serve 24 months in federal prison, which will be immediately followed by three years of supervised release. She has also been ordered to pay $3.4 million in restitution. The court mandated that $10,000 was due immediately.

During the hearing, the court heard additional evidence that Liqua Tech had to lay off employees and couldn’t provide bonuses to remaining employees due to Green’s theft.

“In handing down the sentence, the court noted the length and depth of Green’s betrayal of people who trusted her,” the Department of Justice said in a release.

The Justice Department reports Green was permitted to remain on bond and voluntarily surrender to a prison facility in the near future.