EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — A 61-year-old woman was sentenced on Wednesday, Feb. 18, to over 2 years in prison for wire fraud, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.
Carol Talamantes, 61, from El Paso, was employed as a certified public accountant for multiple real estate businesses operating in Texas and New Mexico, from which she stole $603,738.96 between Oct. 20, 2020, and Oct. 31, 2024, according to court documents.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Talamantes fraudulently wrote company checks to herself, electronically transferred money from company bank accounts to her personal bank accounts, and transferred funds to herself via Automatic Clearing House (ACH) transactions through the real estate businesses.
She also initiated over 90 fraudulent transactions from the real estate businesses directly to herself and used the proceeds for her own personal benefit, including to pay her home mortgage and personal credit card bill.
On Sept. 26, 2025, Talamantes was summoned to federal court, where she pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and was granted a $20,000 bond. She also agreed to a money judgment of $603,738.96, the U.S. Attorney’s Office added.
The FBI investigated the case. Assistant U.S. Attorney Phillip Countryman prosecuted the case.
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