ATHOL - The U.S. Attorney's Office Thursday recommended four years of prison for Sally Hansen, who pleaded guilty to embezzling $417,879 from the city of Athol.

Hansen, the former city clerk, will face formal sentencing on June 9 in federal court at 11 a.m.

According to court filings, "Hansen was hired in 2009 by the city of Athol to be the Athol city clerk. Over the term of her employment, she engaged in a scheme to defraud the city of Athol and its taxpayers by unlawfully and illegally taking $417,879 from the various accounts of the city."

"When her scheme was discovered in June of 2014, the defendant hired an attorney and met with local and federal law enforcement. The defendant admitted what she had done and explained to law enforcement how she managed to make such a scheme work for so long. The defendant agreed to plead guilty to her actions and on Jan. 21, she pled guilty to a fifteen-count (allegation) charging her with wire fraud," the document stated.

Athol Mayor Darla Kuhman said Hansen was supposed to be sentenced on May 5, but she was granted an extension to June 9.

Kuhman said she has an appointment to meet with Assistant U.S. Attorney Traci Whelan next week to discuss restitution and other aspects of the sentencing.

"I guess we'll see what happens then," Kuhman said.

In the sentencing memorandum to the court, Whelan explained how attorneys used the federal sentencing guidelines to justify the four-year sentence.

"A sentence of 48 months is appropriate to address the seriousness of the offense, to promote respect for the law, and to provide just punishment. The defendant's crime is not just about stealing money. It is also about violating the trust of the taxpayers in the city of Athol. In reality, the effect of the crime goes beyond the taxpayers in Athol," the memorandum stated. "It affects all citizens who voluntarily agree to pay taxes so that their government can provide services. The privilege of public service comes with the responsibility of ethical and legal behavior. The total disregard for that covenant between taxpayers and public servants lends support to those who feel that 'the system,' 'the government' no longer serves its purpose to help and support those who pay for it."

The document also compared the sentence recommendation to similar crimes that have been prosecuted in the area.

"Wire fraud committed by those in positions of public trust is unfortunately not foreign to North Idaho. In 2013, Sheryl Lynn Carroll, the former city of Coeur d'Alene clerk was sentenced to 40 months imprisonment," the document stated. "Similar to the facts in this case, Ms. Carroll stole money from the city of Coeur d'Alene by using the wires to execute a scheme to embezzle taxpayer money. In that case, Ms. Carroll took $365,000. A 40-month sentence in that case was appropriate and a 48-month sentence in this case is appropriate."