Theresa A. Freeman, 65, of Yonkers, N.Y., was sentenced to 18 months in federal prison Wednesday for masterminding a multi-state unemployment benefits fraud scheme using a fake company she invented out of thin air. U.S. District Judge Janet Bond Arterton handed down the sentence in New Haven, Connecticut, ordering Freeman to serve three years of supervised release following her imprisonment and pay $43,863 in restitution.
Freeman created a phony business called “Tribal Organic Products,” filing incorporation papers in Connecticut and listing a Trumbull address as its base. But investigators found zero evidence the company ever operated. It was a shell—crafted solely to file false unemployment claims. In December 2012, her son, Sean E. Montiero, filed for benefits claiming he’d been laid off from the non-existent firm. Between January and July 2013, Montiero pocketed $13,474 in Connecticut unemployment funds.
But Connecticut wasn’t the only state she fleeced. Federal investigators uncovered identical scams targeting Pennsylvania and North Carolina. Freeman submitted fraudulent employer records to the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industries, leading to $16,253 in stolen benefits. In North Carolina, her scheme netted $14,136 from the Division of Employment Security. All told, the scam bled $43,863 from already-stretched public assistance programs.
Freeman has been in federal custody since her arrest on May 5, 2016. On September 20, 2016, she pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. The case, prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Deborah R. Slater, exposed a pattern of calculated deceit across state lines, exploiting unemployment systems with cold precision.
This isn’t Freeman’s first time facing federal time for fraud. She has a prior conviction in the District of South Carolina for mail fraud tied to the same type of unemployment benefits scam. In that case, she pulled the same trick in South Carolina, Connecticut, Hawaii, Florida, and New York, and was sentenced to 15 months in prison. Her latest conviction underscores a relentless pattern of exploiting public trust for personal gain.
Sean E. Montiero has also pleaded guilty in connection with the scam and is awaiting sentencing. The investigation was jointly conducted by the U.S. Department of Labor – Office of Inspector General; Connecticut Department of Labor; Office of the Chief State’s Attorney; Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industries; North Carolina Department of Commerce, Division of Employment Security; and the Yonkers Police Department.
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Key Facts
- State: Connecticut
- Agency: DOJ USAO
- Category: Fraud & Financial Crimes
- Source: Official Source ↗
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