Bend resident Tamila Ballenger, 48, pleaded guilty Tuesday in federal court in Eugene to filing a false tax return and structuring a currency transaction to avoid reporting income to the Internal Revenue Service, according to a news release from the U.S. Department of Justice.

Ballenger’s husband, Harold “Hal” Ballenger, was named as a co-defendant in the case.

Filing a false return is punishable by up to three years in prison and a $250,000 fine, according to the release. Illegally structuring a transaction carries a penalty of up to five years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

The Ballengers were accused of spending more than $250,000 from 1999 through 2002 renovating their home on Hughes Road, northeast of Bend, using cash, money orders and cashier’s checks, according to the release. The indictment also alleged that the couple diverted income from their bank accounts to hide it from the IRS, purchasing cashier’s checks in a way that prevented the transactions from being reported.

The case involved an estimated loss of $71,563 in taxes, according to the release.

In the plea agreement, Tamila Ballenger agreed to forfeit the Hughes Road property, which the couple has owned since 1987, and waive her claim to $18,300 seized in a civil action, the release reported.

Harold Ballenger pleaded guilty in federal court in Boise, Idaho, on drug charges in November, according to previous Bulletin reports.

He was accused of being part of a multi-state drug ring that made more than $20 million over 30 years, with a variety of business interests and property including airplanes, boats, vehicles and real estate in Oregon, Washington, Idaho, California, Hawaii and Colorado, according to previous reports.

Harold Ballenger is expected to be sentenced in March. Tamila Ballenger is set to be sentenced in April.