Stole to fund gambling
The US Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Washington (USAO-WDWA) has announced the sentencing of an ex-Washington state employee with a severe gambling addiction to 18 months in prison for stealing almost $900,000.
US District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright sentenced Olympia resident Matthew Randall Ping, 48, in Tacoma on Thursday for wire fraud.
The USAO-WDWA took to X with news of the sentence and how Ping used credit card payment processing and expense review systems to embezzle from the State of Washington:
Judge Cartwright remarked that while Ping’s crime was “very serious,” it was driven by his addiction to gambling. “Gambling addiction can destroy the life of someone who is otherwise an upstanding citizen,” Cartwright stated at sentencing.
Ping’s thing for Vegas
According to Assistant US Attorney Dane Westermeyer, most of the $900k stolen by Ping from the Washington State Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH) was spent at casinos.
“He used this stolen taxpayer money to fuel his gambling habit, fund at least six trips to Las Vegas, pay off a luxury vehicle loan, and otherwise support his lifestyle.”
largest insider embezzlement from Washington State in the last 15 years”
Ping’s illegal pursuit of the luxury lifestyle now means he must do time befitting his crime, which Acting US Attorney Teal Luthy Miller called “the largest insider embezzlement from Washington State in the last 15 years.”
Miller added that Ping’s crime had undermined “trust in our state financial safeguards” and that he cheated both taxpayers and the IRS.
In his sentencing memo, Westermeyer said Ping “failed to report any of the income from his theft on his federal tax returns, which resulted in a tax loss of nearly $250,000.”
As the OAH credit card custodian between 2019 and 2023, Ping used his position to hatch a sophisticated scheme involving creating fake vendor accounts and charging over $330,000 to credit cards in the state agency’s name.
Help others
According to the DOJ release, Ping has agreed to the state, insurer, and the IRS to pay full restitution of $1,118,362. He will also serve three years supervised release when he walks out of jail.
During his time in prison, Ping may consider what Judge Cartwright suggested when he told the court he tried to seek help for his gambling addiction but “resources for that addiction are very limited.”
Cartwright urged Ping to help those also struggling with addiction by actively “advocating for services and regulations” that would benefit them.
