An update on life in the kleptocracy otherwise known as the District of Columbia, where city employees and co-conspirators managed to steal $16 million over a number of years.

The two employees charged yesterday — Harriette Walters, 51, and Diane Gustus, 54 — worked in the real property division of the tax office, where Walters oversaw the issuance of refunds to commercial and residential property owners who had overpaid. The city collected $1.45 billion in real property tax revenue in fiscal 2007 and refunded $20.7 million, according to data provided by Gandhi’s office.
Under the scheme described by federal authorities, Walters and Gustus prepared and approved bogus refund checks that were sent to friends and relatives at sham companies.