Minnesota Woman Sentenced to 10 Years in Prison for Bill Stuffing Scheme at Northwood Casino
Mary Kate Nguyen, a 37-year-old woman from Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, originally from Vietnam, has been sentenced to ten years in federal prison for her involvement in a bill stuffing scheme at the Northwood casino in Iowa. The sentencing took place on January 10, 2025, at the Federal courthouse in the Northern District of Iowa in Cedar Rapids.
Details of the Fraud Scheme
Nguyen’s crime spree began when she defrauded a nail salon owner in Minnesota out of over $100,000 by posing as a loan broker under the guise of “My Second Chance Financing, Ltd.” She convinced the victim to take out loans in their name, promising to pay them off to improve their credit score. Instead, she pocketed the money for herself, leaving the victim in financial ruin.
In an attempt to cover her tracks, between December 2016 and February 2017, Nguyen and her accomplices engaged in “bill stuffing” at the Northwood casino in Iowa. This practice involves creating fake slot machine tickets by inserting money and then cashing them out to create a false paper trail. This allowed Nguyen to hide the illegal source of the funds she had obtained through her fraudulent activities.
Legal Troubles and Extensive Criminal History
After being indicted by a grand jury in late 2021, Nguyen was released on pretrial in Minnesota, where she continued her criminal activities, including using methamphetamine and absconding from supervision. She was eventually arrested by the United States Marshal’s Service in September 2022.
Nguyen’s criminal history in Minnesota is extensive, with multiple convictions for theft, driving while impaired, theft by check, giving false information to law enforcement, and drug possession. Her repeated attempts to defraud financial institutions and obstruct justice have led to her current incarceration.
Sentencing and Judge’s Remarks
United States District Court Judge Leonard T. Strand sentenced Nguyen to 120 months in prison, a $20,000 fine, and ordered her to pay $131,175 in restitution to her victim. He also imposed a five-year term of supervised release after her prison term. Judge Strand labeled Nguyen as an “extreme danger to society” and a “substantial, serious menace to society” due to her repeated financial crimes and obstruction of justice.
As Nguyen awaits transfer to a federal prison, the case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Timothy L. Vavricek and investigated by various law enforcement agencies, highlighting the collaborative effort to bring her to justice.
