A former tax collector for the city of Westbrook pleaded guilty in federal court Monday to embezzling funds from the city.

Ann Marie Williams, 52, of Saco was charged with taking $118,000 between July of 2015 and April of this year. City officials have said Williams “skimmed” cash deposits in the finance department.

Suspicious activity in Williams’ private bank account was reported to the FBI by the financial institution, which alerted the city on April 26. She was fired that day.

Williams faces up to 10 years in prison, three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. She will be sentenced after the completion of a presentence investigation report.

The city has since revised procedures and further separated responsibilities among employees in the finance department to prevent a similar scheme from happening again, according to Westbrook officials.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.