Woman accused of stealing $100M from US Army to buy clothes, cars
Newsy
A Texas woman allegedly used a fake business to siphon millions in funds from the U.S. Army over six years.
A Texas woman may face a nearly 150-year jail sentence for allegedly defrauding the U.S. Army out of more than $100 million, which she is accused of spending on lavish personal items.
A San Antonio federal grand jury indicted Janet Yamanaka Mello on 10 counts related to the alleged fraud scheme she concocted while working as a civilian financial program manager at Fort Sam Houston, the Department of Justice said.
The indictment, obtained by Scripps News, alleges Mello formed a business named Child Health and Young Lifelong Development (CHYLD) in December 2016 while working at Fort Sam Houston and then used the organization to garner funds from the 4-H Military Partnership Grant program through August 2023.
The 4-H grant provides money to entities focused on youth development, and part of Mello's job was determining whether the program had enough funds to provide to applicants. Court documents allege this is how the 57-year-old was able to secure funds for her "business."
"Mello claimed that CHYLD provided services to military members and their families, when, in reality, CHYLD did not provide any services," the U.S. Attorney's Office, Western District of Texas, said.
