A federal judge on Wednesday sentenced an Atlanta woman to more than 16 years in prison for her role in a scheme that prosecutors say siphoned nearly $10 million from Amazon.
Federal prosecutors in the Northern District of Georgia said Brittany Hudson, 40, was convicted on 30 felony counts including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to commit money laundering, money laundering and forgery of a federal judge’s signature. Authorities say Hudson and her partner, Kayricka Wortham, 35, ran the scheme over a roughly six-month period beginning in January 2022.
How prosecutors say the scheme worked
According to court filings and statements from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, the fraud relied on false vendor invoices and internal approvals to divert corporate funds into accounts controlled by the two defendants and others.
- Beginning in January 2022, prosecutors say Wortham, while employed as an operations manager at Amazon’s Smyrna warehouse, approved invoices for vendors that did not actually provide goods or services.
- Hudson, who already operated a business with contractual ties to Amazon, and Wortham submitted more than 1,000 fabricated invoices over six months.
- The fraudulent paperwork is alleged to have caused Amazon to transfer more than $9.4 million into bank accounts controlled by Hudson, Wortham and additional conspirators.
With the allegedly misappropriated funds, the couple made significant luxury purchases, including a Lamborghini Urus, a Porsche Panamera and a residence in Smyrna valued at approximately $1 million, prosecutors said.
Attempts to conceal and expand the scheme
Prosecutors said the defendants did not stop after the initial scheme. The pair were first charged in December 2022. While released on bond the following January, they allegedly attempted to defraud another company.
Investigators also allege Hudson and Wortham created counterfeit court documents that bore forged signatures of a Chief U.S. District Judge and a Cobb County Magistrate Judge. Those documents purported to show the charges connected to the Amazon scheme had been dropped and were emailed to a franchising company as part of an effort to open a hookah lounge in Midtown Atlanta.
“The defendants fabricated documents and signatures to try to move forward with new business ventures even as federal charges loomed,” prosecutors wrote in court papers.
Charges, conviction and local ties
Hudson was convicted on 30 felony counts. The public statements from the U.S. Attorney’s Office identify Wortham as Hudson’s partner in the alleged scheme and note Wortham’s role at the Smyrna Amazon facility as an operations manager.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Duration of alleged fraud | About six months beginning January 2022 |
| Number of fake invoices | More than 1,000 |
| Amount diverted | More than $9.4 million |
| Notable purchases | Lamborghini Urus, Porsche Panamera, $1M Smyrna home |
| Sentence (Hudson) | More than 16 years in federal prison |
The U.S. Attorney’s Office emphasized the local connections of the case: Wortham worked at Amazon’s Smyrna warehouse, Hudson maintained business relationships with Amazon through her contracting company, and the defendants targeted a Midtown Atlanta location as part of their franchising plans.
Local consequences and next steps
The case highlights the potential vulnerability of large corporate accounts to insider-enabled schemes and the reach of federal prosecutors into the Atlanta area. Authorities have not released statements in this filing about restitution amounts or additional civil remedies, and the status of charges or proceedings against Wortham was not detailed in the sentencing notice for Hudson.
Federal prosecutors have underscored that the pair’s alleged actions included efforts to hide the fraud and to use forged court documents to further their schemes. The sentencing of Hudson in federal court marks a major development in the investigation and signals continued federal scrutiny of fraud that exploits employer systems.
Anyone with information related to the case was directed to contact the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Northern District of Georgia, according to the office’s public statement.
