Federal prosecutors say a former finance chief quietly funneled more than $10.7 million out of an Arizona software company and into his own life, right down to nearly $40,000 on Super Bowl tickets. The alleged long game of corporate skimming is now center stage in a federal wire fraud case in Phoenix.
Court paperwork obtained by Arizona’s Family names the defendant as Mark David Latham, the former finance director for PSC Software. Prosecutors say that from March 2009 through about January 2023, Latham used the company’s bank account to pay his personal credit card bills. Investigators allegedly traced more than $10.7 million in transfers and purchases, including a $38,939 Vivid Seats charge for Super Bowl LVII in Glendale and two company account payments on Jan. 30, 2023 that totaled $40,000 to his Chase card. Latham is charged with one count of wire fraud, and prosecutors say they intend to seize his property to help repay what they allege was stolen.
Charges and penalties
Prosecutors filed a single wire fraud count, a go-to federal charge when electronic transfers are allegedly used to move stolen funds. Under 18 U.S.C. § 1343, the federal wire fraud statute, a conviction can bring up to 20 years in prison along with substantial fines, depending on the specifics of the case. The Legal Information Institute publishes the full text of the statute that underpins these prosecutions.
Federal enforcement and asset recovery in Arizona
The U.S. Attorney’s Office in Arizona has been leaning into big dollar fraud prosecutions in recent years, with high value cases resulting in seizures of cash, luxury vehicles and other assets to pay back victims. That trend showed up again in a 2024 enforcement action involving multiple defendants and significant forfeitures, and the local office has kept white collar and health care fraud high on its priority list. The U.S. Attorney’s Office and the Department of Justice Asset Forfeiture Program provide the framework prosecutors use to seize and hold property while a case moves forward, and forfeited funds can later be used to compensate victims and support enforcement work…