Susana Rivera, a former director of accounting and human resources for a kitchen remodeling firm located in Greenwich and Westchester, pleaded guilty to wire fraud for allegedly embezzling more than $630,000 from her former employer. The charge carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison.
According to a July 1 news release from the US Attorney’s office Southern District of New York, in October 2019, Rivera was hired as the Director of Accounting and Human Resources at the victim company, a family owned kitchen design and remodeling business in Mamaroneck, Bedford and Greenwich.
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 caused the victim company’s payroll company to make unauthorized payments in a net amount of more than $370,000 to a fake vendor that Rivera created to receive the money.
Rivera also caused unauthorized transfers from the victim company’s bank account in an amount exceeding $2,900 to pay her personal utility bills. To get restrictions on the use of the victim company’s credit cards removed, Rivera posed as an owner of the victim company in telephone calls with the company’s credit card company. Rivera 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.