A civil servant who allegedly conned the U.S. Army out of $100 million gets to retire with full benefits, thanks to a federal law and government red tape.
Janet Yamanaka Mello, 57, was flagged by the IRS for living a lavish lifestyle while earning a government salary of just $122,996.
That may sound like a comfortable income, but Mello managed to squeeze 31 luxury homes, a fleet of big-ticket cars and motorcycles, plenty of designer clothes and blingy jewels, and trips around the world out of those six figures — a skill that earned her a criminal investigation.
“It is one of the Army’s worst-ever theft cases,” the San Antonio Express-News reported.
(Video: YouTube)
But, according to an attorney for Mello, who was indicted on mail fraud and related charges in December, she “earned” her retirement benefits, and there’s nothing the military can do to prevent her from collecting them.
“The command has no authority to impact Ms. Mello’s retirement,” an Army spokeswoman told the Express-News. “In accordance with 5 U.S. Code Section 8312, an individual may be denied an annuity or retired pay on the basis of the service of the individual, if the individual is convicted of treason, rebellion or insurrection, or other similar offenses. There is no similar statutory authority for denying retired pay based on a conviction of other offenses.”
“She earned it,” said attorney Albert Flores.
Referring to her criminal woes, Flores added, “I don’t see how one thing is related to the other.”
According to the New York Post, Mello “worked as a civilian financial program manager at Joint Base San Antonio-Fort Sam Houston” where she “hatched a plan in 2016 to create a business titled ‘Child Health and Youth Lifelong Development’ [CHYLD] so she would siphon funds she received from the Army to herself.”
According to a Department of Justice press release issued in December, “Mello claimed that CHYLD provided services to military members and their families, when, in reality, CHYLD did not provide any services. The indictment alleges that Mello instead used the funds to buy millions of dollars in jewelry, clothing, vehicles, and real estate. Additionally, Mello is alleged to have falsified the digital signature of one of her supervisors on multiple occasions.”
“Mello is charged with five counts of mail fraud, four counts of engaging in a monetary transaction over $10,000 using criminally derived proceeds, and one count of aggravated identity theft,” the release stated.
Mello pleaded not guilty at her first court appearance in December, but Flores suggested there would be a quick end to the criminal case, the Express-News reports.
“We expect a large portion of the assets will be recovered,” he said, “In other words, a lot of the money was spent on tangible assets that the government can (recoup) — real estate, cash, vehicles, properties, things of that nature. We’re being very cooperative in anything we can to turn that over.”
More than $18 million in cash “from six different accounts connected to Mello,” were seized by authorities, according to The Post.
The accused con purchased 31 properties in Colorado, Maryland, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington, and “at least 80 vehicles,” the outlet states.
If convicted, Mello faces up to 142 years in prison.
Writers and editors can be contacted at [email protected] with feedback, tips, or corrections.
Melissa Fine is the former executive editor of Casino Player, Strictly Slots, and Poker
Digest magazines. She is a UCLA graduate, news junkie, and dedicated Stargate SG-
1 fan. Melissa currently lives with her dog and two cats in a tiny town in the Sierra
Nevada foothills.
Comment
We have no tolerance for comments containing violence, racism, profanity, vulgarity, doxing, or discourteous behavior. If a comment is spam, instead of replying to it please click the ∨ icon below and to the right of that comment. Thank you for partnering with us to maintain fruitful conversation.