Woman who fled business fraud sentencing seeks early release

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — An Ohio woman who fled the United States for Mexico ahead of her sentencing in one of the biggest corporate fraud cases in decades is asking for early release from prison, citing poor health and fear of contracting the coronavirus behind bars.

Rebecca Parrett, now 72, was convicted in 2008 of securities fraud and other charges in a $1.9 billion scheme at health care financing company National Century Financial Enterprises.

Parrett, who was free on bond, fled to Mexico after her conviction. Federal Judge Algenon Marbley sentenced her in absentia to 25 years in prison. Parrett was apprehended in 2010, sent to prison and is in a minimum-security federal prison in Dublin, California.

She is asking for early release, saying she suffers from “a rare blood disease that has no cure,” and other ailments, including arthritis, high blood pressure, osteoporosis and cholesterol. She also fears contracting COVID-19 while in prison.

In a six-page, single-spaced letter to Marbley filed in federal court last month, Parrett apologized to the judge for leaving the country, saying she was overwhelmed with depression and at “the lowest point of my life.”

“I truly am sorry for the additional aggravation and work that I created for you and others,” Parrett wrote. “My state of mind was stuck on terminating my life and I never had any thought of other consequences at the time.”

“I truly am sorry for the additional aggravation and work that I created for you and others,” Parrett wrote. “My state of mind was stuck on terminating my life and I never had any thought of other consequences at the time.”

Parrett described tough early years, including an abusive first marriage. She included notes of support from a chaplain, a minister, a doctor and...