WHITE PLAINS – A federal indictment unsealed in the White Plains federal court charged a Bronx woman with wire fraud and identity theft for allegedly embezzling over $550,000 from her employer. The woman had worked at a family-owned kitchen remodeling firm located in Westchester County and Greenwich, Connecticut.
Forty-year-old Susana Rivera faces 20 years in prison if convicted of the charges. Rivera was the director of Accounting and Human Resources for the company where she allegedly stole the money.
U.S. Attorney Damian Williams said Rivera “abused the trust her employer placed in her by stealing more than $500,000 in hundreds of individual thefts over 22 months. She stole and used her employer’s identity to further her scheme. She will now be held accountable for her thefts.”
According to the indictment, starting in November 2019, Rivera made hundreds of unauthorized charges in a total amount exceeding $175,000 to the victim company’s credit cards for personal expenses, including jewelry, beauty treatments, laser treatments, travel, pets, cosmetic surgery, clothing, and cars, including a partial payment on a $100,000 Corvette.
Rivera also stole over $370,000 by creating a fake payroll vendor so she could receive the funds. She allegedly also caused unauthorized transfers from the company’s bank account in an amount exceeding $2,900 to pay her personal utility bills. To get restrictions on the use of the company’s credit cards removed, Rivera posed as an owner of the company in telephone calls with the company’s credit card company. She also sent the credit card company photographs of the owner’s driver’s license to cause credit card company personnel to believe she was the owner.
Rivera was arrested and brought to the courthouse on Wednesday, February 9.
