OGDEN — An Ames woman who pleaded guilty to theft after prosecutors say she stole nearly half a million dollars from her mother-in-law has been sentenced to prison.
Myrna Hockemeier, 66, was sentenced Monday to up to 10 years in prison. In exchange for her plea, state prosecutors dropped a more serious charge of ongoing criminal conduct.
Authorities say Hockemeier obtained a debit card from her husband’s mother’s bank back in 2007 and spent the woman’s life savings of about $484,000 on gambling and clothes. Her then-husband discovered the theft in 2014 when he got a letter from the IRS saying taxes hadn’t been paid on savings bonds Hockemeier had cashed without his knowledge. He filed for divorce that year.