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The former owner of Cindy’s Flowers and Gifts, Cynthia Ann Smith, 60, who pleaded no contest to insurance fraud and unemployment insurance fraud in August, was sentenced Oct. 19 to five years of supervised probation and 90 days in county jail, starting on or after Dec. 16, according to prosecutors.
She will be subject to search and seizure, fines and fees, and genetic marker testing. She will also have to pay restitution.
Her next hearing, to determine how much restitution she will be required to pay, has been set for Nov. 30.
According to prosecutors, Ms. Smith was paying her employees under the table in cash and failed to renew her workers’ compensation insurance policy, which was canceled because the premiums were not paid. She also allegedly was not paying some employees at all, and pay deductions for state and federal taxes were not being made.
Ms. Smith’s shop was searched by Menlo Park police in November 2012. The search came after a year-long investigation of workers’ compensation fraud and violations of state business regulations.
She remains out of custody on a $20,000 bail bond.
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Finally, rightful punishment. She has been taking orders for flower deliveries delivering arrangement worth a fraction of the price for decades.