FORMER BANK MANGER GETS 27 MONTHS FOR EMBEZZLEMENT

A former manager of Key Bank's Blackfoot branch has been sentenced to 27 months in federal prison and ordered to repay more than $252,500 that she stole from the bank.

Shauna Howell, 35, of Shelley, was sentenced Monday by visiting U.S. District Judge Robert J. Timlin at the federal courthouse in Pocatello. Timlin took into account Howell's guilty plea, her remorse and her "difficult" childhood, but said her crime was "very sophisticated" and "particularly serious," and warranted the prison time.

Howell used her position as a manager to embezzle small amounts of money at a time for more than four years from various customers' lines of credit and credit card accounts. Her activities began in August of 2002 and continued through October of 2006.

Judge Timlin ordered Howell to make payments of at least $25 per quarter while she is incarcerated. Once she is free and able to work, he ordered her to pay 10 percent of her gross income to the bank each month, but never less than $25. Howell will be on supervised release for five years following her incarceration.