BOSTON (WWLP) - A former employee at a Massachusetts pharmaceutical company was sentenced to prison in connection with embezzling over $2.5 million. According to the Department of Justice, in 2022, 40-year-old Priya Bhambi of Brookline and her alleged co-conspirator orchestrated and executed a scheme to defraud Takeda Pharmaceutical Company Limited (Takeda) of at least $2.3 million in payments for purported consulting services by submitting fabricated invoices on behalf of a sham consulting company. Massachusetts booker for high-end brothels pleads guilty Bhambi had previously engaged in the same fraud using a different sham consulting company, resulting in payments from Takeda totaling nearly $300,000 for consulting services that were never provided. It is alleged that the two incorporated Evoluzione Consulting LLC (Evoluzione), created a false website and submitted a statement of work to Takeda. A master services agreement with Evoluzione was signed by Takeda and a purchase order for consulting services for $3.542 million. It is alleged that five separate invoices for services by Evoluzione were also paid by Evoluzione for $460,000 each before discovering the scheme. Bhambi pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and three counts of wire fraud. She was sentenced to 46 months in prison, followed by two years of supervised release, and ordered to pay $2,585,480 in restitution. In addition, Bhambi was court-ordered to forfeit a Mercedes-Benz Model E, over $1 million in fraud proceeds held in bank accounts, and a $49,985 wedding venue deposit, all seized by the government, as well as a diamond engagement ring and a Seaport condominium purchased with fraud proceeds. The alleged co-conspirator is set for trial on December 2. “Pure greed drove Priya Bhambi to take advantage of her senior-level, highly compensated position at Takeda to steal millions of dollars from the company,” said Acting United States Attorney Joshua S. Levy. “I commend Takeda for reporting this fraud to the authorities promptly. As a result not only has Bhambi been held accountable for this egregious breach of trust, but the government was able to seize assets with an estimated value of over $1.5 million traceable to her theft. The sentence sends two strong messages – first, there are very serious consequences for executives who exploit their positions to line their own pockets and second, for companies who are victims of embezzlement, law enforcement stands ready to do whatever it can to recoup stolen funds and hold individuals accountable for fraud against their employers.” “Priya Bhambi apparently felt her nearly half-a-million-dollar salary at Takeda wasn’t enough, so she orchestrated a complex financial fraud scheme to steal millions more to enhance her paycheck,” said Jodi Cohen, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Boston Division. “In doing so, she used the company’s cash to buy everything from a diamond ring, to a Mercedes Benz, and even put a down payment on a condo and wedding venue. Fraud is never the answer if you feel your paycheck is not up to par. With this sentence Ms. Bhambi will now pay for her crimes through restitution and prison time.” Local News Headlines Gov. Healey responds to homeowners with crumbling concrete South Hadley Council on Aging host Winter Preparedness Mini Fair Last day of in-person early voting in Massachusetts Gift-ology in Westfield closes its doors, relocates out of city WWLP-22News, an NBC affiliate, began broadcasting in March 1953 to provide local news, network, syndicated, and local programming to western Massachusetts. Watch the 22News Digital Edition weekdays at 4 p.m. on WWLP.com.