By Jason A. Smith
jsmith@henryherald.com

A McDonough woman has been sentenced to prison for defrauding a government agency in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, prosecutors said.

Markisha Burks, 27, was sentenced on Tuesday to one year and one day in prison, after being convicted on charges of making a false statement to a governmental agency, mail fraud, wire fraud, and conversion of government funds, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Atlanta said. She was convicted by a federal jury on Dec. 8, 2009, prosecutors said.

The charges against Burks stemmed from a “scheme to defraud the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina,” according to Patrick Crosby, a spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office. “Between Sept. 21, 2005, and July 19, 2006, Burks falsely represented to FEMA that she resided in New Orleans, La., at the time of Hurricane Katrina, and suffered residential and personal property losses, when in fact she resided in McDonough, Ga., at the time of the hurricane,” Crosby said in a statement.

“To perpetuate the fraud, Burks gave FEMA a Louisiana address where she did not live, and falsely claimed that her residence had been damaged and that she lost personal property as a result of the hurricane.”

Burks reportedly received $2,000 for emergency housing from FEMA, as well as $9,000 for rental and other forms of assistance, Crosby said.

In a statement, acting U.S. Attorney Sally Quillian Yates said Burks “tried to take advantage of FEMA’s emergency aid which needed to go to real victims, and now she will pay the price.”

Burks’ prison sentence will be followed by a term of supervised release. She will also be required to pay restitution to FEMA and the American Red Cross, totaling $11,426.