Pilot Flying J “Inside Girls” sentenced to community service

Senior U.S. District Judge Curtis L. Collier Jr. sentenced the final four women to be tried in the Pilot Flying J fraud case to probation and community service, the Knoxville News Sentinel reported. The women include Ashley Judd, Holly Radford, Lexie Holden and Janet Welch.

“You are all extremely talented people,” said Collier to the group. “You have a wealth of gifts. Use those gifts to make a better society.”

The group of women, known as the “Inside Girls” are the final four defendants of the 19 Pilot Flying J employees to be sentenced for a $56.5 million fraud scheme against customers. The scheme utilized customer data to exploit carriers who bought diesel fuel from Pilot. Pilot would adjust the price for diesel rebates and pay back its customers less than they were owed. The company took advantage of smaller carriers who weren’t able to leverage their own data resources to check rebate prices.

Holden, Judd, Radford and Welch appeared in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee. All four have admitted to committing mail and wire fraud on behalf of their superiors. The group testified against their former boss Mark Hazelwood, the former President of Pilot Flying J. The Knoxville News Sentinel reported that Hazelwood remains under house arrest after being found guilty of fraud and sentenced to 150 months in prison.

Holden is the only member of the group who was not sentenced to community service as she works a full-time job and runs a small business, according to the Sentinel.