By Lorri Helfand, Times Staff Writer
Friday, September 10, 2010
LARGO — A woman accused of bilking 18 homeowner groups from throughout Pinellas County and her boss out of more than $1 million was sentenced to eight years in prison Friday.
Catherine McMullen, 48, of Largo pleaded no contest to grand theft in June. Judge Joseph A. Bulone determined that her actions were premeditated, deliberate and continuous.
"This was totally out of character," said her husband, Mac McMullen, an Army Reserve colonel and a former spokesman for the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office and the Largo Police Department.
McMullen, who had served in Iraq and was living in Arizona during the time money was taken, apologized in court to her boss, Brian Buxton, and the 30 association residents in the courtroom.
"I don't understand at all," he said. "I was gone too much."
Catherine McMullen worked for Buxton Properties in Largo and until her arrest in March 2009, she had sole control of the finances for the associations Buxton managed.
According to sentencing guidelines, she could have served anywhere from 21 months to 30 years.
Her attorney, John Trevena, presented evidence theorizing that sexual and mental abuse by her father may have caused conditions that predisposed her to commit the crime.
McMullen accepted responsibility for taking less than $500,000.
"I question myself every day now why I did what I did," she said.
Until McMullen's arrest, none of the associations noticed anything amiss. McMullen provided false bank statements to them.
The theft took a financial and emotional toll on the residents. They were stuck trying to figure out how much was stolen and how to cover repairs and day-to-day expenses.
"I'm glad she got eight years," said Carol Gray of Sunfish Bay Homeowners Association in Clearwater. "I think it was a fair judgment."