MINEOLA, NY – A Uniondale woman has been found guilty of grand larceny and forgery charges for orchestrating a $75,000 loan fraud scheme involving fake businesses and falsified documents, Nassau County prosecutors announced.
Janelle DeFreitas, 45, was convicted November 19 after a jury trial before Judge Terence Murphy of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Third Degree.
Prosecutors said DeFreitas used a straw applicant to obtain an express business loan from Dime Bank, then stole the funds after the loan was approved and deposited into a fraudulent business account.
DeFreitas was remanded following the verdict and is scheduled for sentencing on December 18, where she faces up to 15 years in prison as a second felony offender.
Key Points
- Janelle DeFreitas, 45, convicted of grand larceny and forgery for a $75,000 bank loan scheme.
- She used false business documents and straw applicants to secure and steal funds from Dime Bank.
- DeFreitas faces up to 7½ to 15 years in prison at sentencing next month.
Prosecutors describe pattern of financial fraud
According to Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly, DeFreitas used multiple fake companies between June 2021 and January 2022 to apply for express business loans at several Dime Bank branches.
She first appeared at a Queens branch with an accomplice, applying for loans totaling more than $400,000 for four fictitious businesses, all registered to the same Brooklyn address. Dime Bank staff became suspicious when a site visit revealed no legitimate business operations and denied the loans.
Investigators later determined that the corporate and incorporation documents DeFreitas submitted were forged.
Loan approved under fake company name
In August 2021, DeFreitas visited a Dime Bank branch in Garden City using a false identity and attempted several additional loan applications. After multiple denials, she successfully obtained a $75,000 express business loan under a shell company called Katrina the Movie 1 Inc.
Prosecutors said the money was immediately deposited into a new account she controlled, and she quickly withdrew the funds.
Second felony conviction for financial crimes
DA Donnelly called DeFreitas “a serial grifter,” noting it was her second felony conviction for financial crimes in less than a decade. She was released from prison just a year before launching the new fraud scheme.
Between June and August 2021, investigators linked DeFreitas to at least five business account openings and six fraudulent loan applications at Dime Bank branches across Queens and Nassau County.
The case was investigated by the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office and prosecuted by members of the Financial Crimes Bureau under DA Donnelly’s direction.