Strafford woman sentenced for embezzlement scheme in case tied to floral company's closure

A Strafford woman has been sentenced to prison time for embezzling from her former employer in a scheme that officials say led to the closure of the Springfield floral company.

Kayellen Faye Inskip, 47, was sentenced in federal court today to 36 months in federal prison without parole and three additional years of supervised release, along with an order of restitution in the amount of $295,772, according to a news release from the office of Jeffrey P. Ray, acting U.S. attorney for the Western District of Missouri.

The sentencing is related to Inskip's use of a company credit card at Mears Floral Products Inc., her former employer, for more than $295,000 in fraudulent charges, according to the release. Inskip had worked as a bookkeeper and operations manager at Mears Floral.

Federal officials say the embezzlement scheme started in 2014 and continued into 2022 and led to the closure of Mears Floral, a flower wholesaler founded in 1949. Mears Floral announced it had closed in a May 2024 Facebook post. 

"This hometown business was in operation for over 70 years and based on statements made to the court, Inskip’s massive embezzlement resulted in Mears Floral going out of business, closing its doors and the firing of its employees. When Mears Floral closed its doors, it had to lay off nearly 33 employees, who had an average of nearly 11 years of employment with Mears Floral, as well as other employees who had worked for over 50 years with this well-known local business," federal officials said in the release. “The loss of Mears Floral, at the hands of Inskip, caused an unknown amount of true losses to the company, its employees and ultimately the local community who benefitted from the operations of this successful business."

Inskip, who provided false financial reports to the company to hide her embezzlement scheme, used the proceeds on personal expenses such as vacations, restaurants, clothing, utilities, medical bills and college tuition for her daughter, according to the release.

Prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Patrick Carney, the case was investigated by the Springfield Police Department and the U.S. Secret Service.