Associated Press | An Ohio roller derby skater who used the team name “Sadistic Sadie” has admitted in federal court to illegally obtaining more than $400,000 in airline tickets while working for United Airlines. Mercedes Stafford, 34, of Cincinnati pleaded guilty to wire fraud Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Covington, Ky., according to court documents.

Federal prosecutors say Stafford created fake numbers for tickets that
are issued to passengers when a United Airlines flight is canceled or
delayed, to allow passengers to travel on another flight. The
Cincinnati Rollergirls team member then used the fake tickets to obtain
real tickets that she used for herself or provided to family, friends,
teammates and others associated with roller derby events, court records
state. United honored the tickets, whether they were used on its planes
or other airlines.

Stafford booked more than 500 plane tickets between May 6, 2007, to
Oct. 22, 2009, through an online ticketing system while working for
United at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport in
Hebron, Ky., prosecutors say.

Stafford also admitted receiving payments totaling more than $50,000
from individuals and organizations that benefited from the tickets,
prosecutors said.

Stafford could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison, fined a
maximum $250,000 and put on supervised release for up to three years.
She agreed to make restitution to United Airlines, whose parent is UAL
Corp., in an amount the court will determine, prosecutors said. Her
sentencing was scheduled for Sept. 27.

No Cincinnati phone number was listed for Stafford. A message seeking
comment was left Wednesday at the office of her attorney, W. Kelly
Johnson.

Stafford is a former president of the Cincinnati Rollergirls, an
amateur team of about 50 women that competes at the Cincinnati Gardens
and other sports and entertainment arenas around the country. The team
is a member of the Women’s Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA).

A statement on the team’s website said the Rollergirls “have been
fortunate to have Sadistic Sadie as a teammate, coach and former
president, and we were saddened” by the news.

“While we do not condone her actions, of which the rest of the team had
no knowledge, we wish her and her family the best as she takes
responsibility for them and as her case works its way through the
judicial system,” the statement said.

Stafford also was listed on the team’s website as a most valuable
player from 2006-2009 and a winner of the team’s “most feared” award.
Team spokesman Lee Laney in an e-mail Wednesday to The Associated Press
declined to comment beyond the official website statement and did not
respond to questions about Stafford’s status with the team.

Megan McCarthy, a spokeswoman for United Airlines, said Wednesday that
the airline brought the matter to the attention of authorities and
fully cooperated with the investigation. She declined to comment
further.