Federal prosecutors have indicted Palm Harbor accountant Melissia Katherine Gauthreaux, founder of Accounting Resources and Management Services, LLC, on six counts of wire fraud, accusing her of quietly pulling more than $890,000 from a client over several years. The charging document seeks criminal forfeiture of $894,274.26, and each wire fraud count carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison. The Federal Bureau of Investigation opened the case, which is set to be prosecuted by the U.S. Attorney's Office in Tampa.
The indictment, filed April 21 in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida, charges Gauthreaux with six wire fraud counts and alleges she used her accounting firm to move money out of a client's accounts without authorization. The full charging document is available through the U.S. Attorney's Office.
State records list Accounting Resources and Management Services, LLC at 34921 US-19 N in Palm Harbor and identify Gauthreaux as the firm's manager, according to the Florida Division of Corporations. The firm’s website lists "Missy Gauthreaux" as founder and president and provides a Palm Harbor contact, according to the Accounting Resources and Management Services site.
What prosecutors say
In a news release, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida said it is seeking forfeiture of $894,274.26 as the alleged proceeds of the scheme and confirmed that the FBI investigated the matter. The office also identified Assistant U.S. Attorney Merrilyn Hoenemeyer as the prosecutor assigned to the case.
The alleged transactions
According to the indictment, six wire transfers, each for roughly $25,000, were sent from an account ending in -0207 between August and October 2021 and are listed as overt acts in the alleged scheme. Prosecutors say Gauthreaux "did knowingly and intentionally devise a scheme and artifice to defraud" the client, and they are asking the court for a money judgment equal to what the government alleges was taken.
Legal implications
Each wire fraud count carries a statutory maximum of 20 years in prison, and federal prosecutors have filed a criminal forfeiture notice seeking to claw back the alleged proceeds if they win at trial. An indictment is simply a formal accusation, not proof of guilt, and as the U.S. Attorney's Office notes, Gauthreaux is presumed innocent unless and until the government proves its case in court.
Why it matters
Accusations that a trusted financial professional siphoned off client funds get serious attention. The Association of Certified Fraud Examiners' 2024 report pegs the median loss in asset misappropriation schemes at about $120,000, which puts the nearly $894,000 figure in this case far above the typical hit. That scale helps explain why investigators and prosecutors devote resources to long-running, internal fraud allegations.
The case is listed as Case No. 8:26-cr-00141-JLB-LSG in the Middle District of Florida, with the indictment filed April 21. Upcoming hearings and filings will appear on the court’s calendar, but for now the indictment, the U.S. Attorney's Office release and state corporate records remain the primary public windows into the allegations.
