Danielle Steel's Former Assistant to Serve Jail Time for Fraud
April 22, 2010
The SF Gatereports that Danielle Steel's former bookkeeper, Kristy Watts, has been sentenced to two years and nine months in a federal prison.
Kristy Watts, 48, of Tiburon pleaded guilty in September to fraud and tax evasion. She has already paid nearly $1 million to Steel, who sued her in civil court, and was ordered to reimburse the government more than $60,000 in taxes as part of her sentence.
Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker had proposed doubling Watts' sentence but accepted her 33-month plea agreement with prosecutors after Watts expressed remorse at a hearing in San Francisco, said defense lawyer Anthony Brass.
It was reported last year that Kristy Watts embezzled over two million from author Danielle Steel. She was Danielle Steel's assistant/bookkeeper for over 15 years.
The SF Gate 
