TACOMA — A former state employee was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison on Thursday for a stealing nearly $900,000 in taxpayer money over four years to fund his destructive gambling habit.

Matthew R. Ping, who used his position at the Office of Administrative Hearings to funnel state credit card payments to fake businesses he created, was sentenced on one count of wire fraud and one count of falsifying a tax return. He pleaded guilty to the charges in June.

The prison sentence imposed by U.S. District Judge Tiffany Cartwright was less than the 33 months recommended by federal prosecutors, but more than the five years of supervised release sought by Ping’s attorney.

Cartwright also ordered Ping to serve three years of supervised release after finishing his time in prison and to pay

See Full Page