Jurors in Pilot Flying J fraud trial hear tales of betrayal, deceit

This April 30, 2013, file photo shows the Pilot Flying J corporate offices in Knoxville, Tenn. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is acquiring a major stake in Pilot Flying J truck stops and it will become a majority owner within about five years, in a deal announced Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017. (Michael Patrick/Knoxville News Sentinel via AP, File)
This April 30, 2013, file photo shows the Pilot Flying J corporate offices in Knoxville, Tenn. Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway is acquiring a major stake in Pilot Flying J truck stops and it will become a majority owner within about five years, in a deal announced Tuesday, Oct. 3, 2017. (Michael Patrick/Knoxville News Sentinel via AP, File)

A tearful Sherry Blake told jurors Monday she feels like a woman "betrayed" by the former boss who had considered her more like a "work wife" than an executive assistant: former Pilot Flying J President Mark Hazelwood.

Blake, who remains employed at the truck stop giant, testified Monday in U.S. District Court in Chattanooga that she spent years handling all kinds of professional and personal business for Hazelwood. She booked his trips, made out his daily schedule, filtered his email, handled his personal real estate development and sports team businesses, and even paid his monthly personal bills.

And, she said, she made sure he got weekly copies of "trip reports" by his sales executive subordinates - reports federal prosecutors Trey Hamilton and David Lewen say contained incriminating statements about the massive fraud scheme being carried out at the nation's largest diesel fuel retailer.

Read more at our news partner's website, knoxnews.com.

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