Ana Phimmasone Pleads Guilty to Embezzling Over $350,000

San Diego – November 23, 2021: Ana Phimmasone, the former office manager of a local home healthcare provider, has pleaded guilty in federal court to wire fraud. Phimmasone, 37, from Chula Vista, confessed to siphoning off $352,594.47 from the agency and its elderly clients between April 2016 and April 2018.

Phimmasone’s scheme involved stealing checks from her employer and funneling them into her own account. She also exploited her access to clients’ credit card information, billing them through PayPal, Venmo, Square, and Apple Pay, while redirecting the funds to her personal accounts. To deceive victims, she falsely claimed that the healthcare provider had changed its payment processing company to PayPal.

Phimmasone further masked her criminal activities by creating a fraudulent PayPal account using the name of an 87-year-old client, C.P., and billing other victims under this false identity. She also generated fictitious invoices for clients J.B. and E.B., inflating the amounts due to appear legitimate.

Acting U.S. Attorney Randy Grossman commented on the case, emphasizing that the prosecution sends a strong message against those who exploit vulnerable community members. Inspector Carroll N. Harris of the United States Postal Inspection Service underscored the agency’s commitment to protecting the elderly and vulnerable populations.

As part of her plea agreement, Phimmasone agreed to pay $352,586.22 in restitution. She is scheduled for sentencing on March 7, 2022. Case Number: 21cr3262-H.