Thursday, January 27, 2005
D.A. BROWN: ACCOUNTANT/BOOKKEEPER PLEADS GUILTY TO EMBEZZLING OVER $1 MILLION FROM LONG ISLAND CITY ELEVATOR COMPANY; FACES UP TO 15 YEARS IN PRISON
Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown announced today that an accountant/bookkeeper has pled guilty to stealing over $1 million from a Long Island City elevator company that had employed her for over 15 years and faces up to 15 years in prison at sentencing next month.
District Attorney Brown said, “The defendant has admitted her guilt, waived appeal and acknowledged that she used her position as a trusted insider to falsify employee payroll and expense account reports and divert over $1 million of company monies to her personal bank account. The defendant has now been held accountable for her deceit and greed and the term of imprisonment to be imposed is more than warranted.”
District Attorney Brown identified the defendant as Maria Villa, 49, of 24-27 77th Street in East Elmhurst, Queens. The defendant pled guilty earlier today to Grand Larceny in the First Degree and other charges before Queens Supreme Court Justice James P. Griffin who indicated that at sentencing on February 23, 2005 he would impose an indeterminate sentence of five years to 15 years in prison.
According to the District Attorney, the defendant, an accountant/bookkeeper, was employed since 1988 by the P.S. Marcato Elevator Company of 44-11 11th Street in Long Island City, Queens. The company -- founded in 1981 -- employs about 200 persons, performs elevator maintenance, modernization and repair and reports earnings of about $20 million annually.
The District Attorney said that an investigation determined that between November 2, 2000 and June 30, 2002 the defendant falsified company records -- including employee payroll and expense account reports -- and directed the company’s payroll firm to wire those monies -- in amounts ranging from $500 to $23,000 a week to her Chase bank branch on Jackson Avenue in Long Island City for direct deposit to her personal account.
District Attorney Brown said that the actual losses to the company exceeded $5 million. The defendant has executed a confession of judgement for $5.1 million acknowledging a civil liability for that amount to her former employer.
The investigation was conducted by Detective Sergeant Franco Russo and Detective Terence Quinn of the District Attorney’s Detective Squad under the supervision of former Chief Edward T. Brady, now retired, and current Chief Lawrence J. Festa.
Assistant District Attorney Gerard A. Brave, Bureau Chief, of the District Attorney's Organized Crime and Rackets Bureau, prosecuted the case under the supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Peter A. Crusco and Deputy Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Linda M. Cantoni.