Westchester Woman Sentenced in $772,000 Connecticut Fraud Scheme

Rosemarie Collazo of Yonkers was sentenced Friday in Bridgeport to 24 months of imprisonment, followed by three years of supervised release, for stealing more than $700,000 from her employer. She had pleaded guilty in January. Deirdre M. Daly, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced the sentence by U.S. District Judge Stefan R. Underhill.

Collazo worked for Abbey National Treasury Services, PLC, where she assisted in arranging for payments to vendors and others.

Between 2010 and 2016, Collazzo prepared 144 fraudulent duplicate invoice packages and submitted an equivalent number of checks for authorizing signatures for payments that she knew had already been processed and paid. She then deposited the checks into her personal bank account, Daly said.

In addition, on at least three other occasions, the 52-year-old misappropriated a vendor refund check that had been sent the company, and endorsed the check for deposit into her personal bank account.

In total, Collazzo stole $772,242 during the course of this scheme, prosecutors said.

In addition to the prison time and supervised release, Judge Underhill ordered her to pay full restitution.

This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Greenwich Police Department. The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher W. Schmeisser.