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New Jersey Woman Sentenced for Wire Fraud and Tax Evasion
A 64-year-old woman from New Jersey has been sentenced to 12 months and a day in prison for her role in a scheme to defraud a non-profit organization in Philadelphia.
Rochelle Biesenthal, a former bookkeeper at the Jewish Heritage Programs (JHP), was found guilty of one count of wire fraud and three counts of tax evasion. The scheme, which took place between 2002 and April 2009, resulted in the defrauding of JHP of over $400,000.
Biesenthal, who was employed at JHP during the time of the scheme, used her position to issue unauthorized checks drawn on the non-profit’s bank accounts. Instead of using the funds for the organization’s mission, she made the checks payable to herself.
She also authorized electronic debits from JHP’s bank accounts to pay for her personal credit cards and her family’s personal credit cards. In addition to the financial losses, Biesenthal failed to report her unauthorized income in her tax returns for the years 2007 through 2009.
As part of her sentence, Biesenthal was ordered to pay restitution in the amount of $171,187.04 to JHP and $61,637 to the Internal Revenue Service. She was also sentenced to three years of supervised release and a $400 special assessment.
The case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigations, and was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Sozi Pedro Tulante.
Rochelle Biesenthal’s actions were a betrayal of the trust placed in her as a bookkeeper at JHP. Her sentence serves as a reminder that those who commit financial crimes will be held accountable for their actions.
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Key Facts
- State: Pennsylvania
- Category: White Collar Crime|Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: DOJ Press Release ↗
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