The $3.2 million home bought by the military

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:How does someone get that greedy? Take a little and retire. Doing it for years is already exhausting.

Because she is stupid. Very glad she got caught and hope they get the money back, but you really have to be dumb to skim that much money and openly buy that much property, cash. But then again, can't expect much, especially intelligence wise, from the average civilian gov't employee.

Did it say if all the properties are in one place?

"Mello, who earned $129,996 in 2022, purchased 31 different real estate properties in Colorado, Maryland, New Mexico, Texas, and Washington."

https://nypost.com/2024/01/11/news/texas-woman-janet-yamanaka-mello-accussed-of-defrauding-us-army/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I love this home/garages/property. I would live there and be so happy. The 3 season room is the best. Oh.. and the kitchen !! I would love to have a spare 3M.

Or a spare $100 million. $100 million!!

[Anonymous]

Often embezzlers steal for the thrill and believe they are smarter than everyone else. (Different from embezzlers who start stealing because of gambling, addiction or some other financial/debt trigger). This extreme embezzlement seems to support funding the IRS’s criminal investigation/fraud detection divisions. As for Army/Defense Department- how can this much money go missing without notice?!?!

[Anonymous]

I don't know if you have a thing against DMV feds in particular, but according to the article she was in the “U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas as a CYS Financial Program Manager - where she was able to allegedly move money into her shell company." C'mon, reading skills, folks.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I don't know if you have a thing against DMV feds in particular, but according to the article she was in the “U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas as a CYS Financial Program Manager - where she was able to allegedly move money into her shell company." C'mon, reading skills, folks.

So she did use a shell company? (I'm not reading then articles but reading the thread with interest)

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:What’s crazy is that the army didn’t know $100m was missing. She was running the scam for six years.

The IRS caught her for not having the income to buy all these homes and cars for cash on a $130K salary.

Had she just used the shell company to pay corporate taxes and buy the homes, she would have gotten away with this.

Even crooks need to pay their taxes.

Ps - those garages are amazing. Maybe the best I’ve ever seen. Who is the man in her life?

No it's not. LOL. The Pentagon has never passed an audit. They probably don't know where half their money is.

I wonder how many people are quietly stealing money like this and just not getting caught.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know if you have a thing against DMV feds in particular, but according to the article she was in the “U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas as a CYS Financial Program Manager - where she was able to allegedly move money into her shell company." C'mon, reading skills, folks.

So she did use a shell company? (I'm not reading then articles but reading the thread with interest)

Yes.

Her employer seems to be some sort of accounting/financial controller firm that has access to authorize payments from the U.S. Army to various contractors for services rendered. She created a shell company that provided fictitious services to the U.S. Army, using her access at her job + forging her boss’s signature to direct $100M in payments from the Army to her shell company.

She then wired money directly from the shell company to her personal bank account to buy 31 properties and 80+ vehicles in cash over the course of six years. The IRS flagged her transactions as there was no legit source of income for the monies; she did not pay personal income taxes on the monies received and the shell company paid no corporate taxes.

The IRS unwound the entire scheme and notified the U.S. Army.

I imagine there are so many of these schemes happening right now in defense contracting. There is no way to audit (1) where the money is going and (2) if we are actually getting the services promised. The compliance element has all been delegated to other contractors!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I don't know if you have a thing against DMV feds in particular, but according to the article she was in the “U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas as a CYS Financial Program Manager - where she was able to allegedly move money into her shell company." C'mon, reading skills, folks.

So she did use a shell company? (I'm not reading then articles but reading the thread with interest)

Yes.

Her employer seems to be some sort of accounting/financial controller firm that has access to authorize payments from the U.S. Army to various contractors for services rendered. She created a shell company that provided fictitious services to the U.S. Army, using her access at her job + forging her boss’s signature to direct $100M in payments from the Army to her shell company.

She then wired money directly from the shell company to her personal bank account to buy 31 properties and 80+ vehicles in cash over the course of six years. The IRS flagged her transactions as there was no legit source of income for the monies; she did not pay personal income taxes on the monies received and the shell company paid no corporate taxes.

The IRS unwound the entire scheme and notified the U.S. Army.

I imagine there are so many of these schemes happening right now in defense contracting. There is no way to audit (1) where the money is going and (2) if we are actually getting the services promised. The compliance element has all been delegated to other contractors!

And note that what is meant by "forging her boss's signature" is that it was electronic, which might mean a mouse click. I don't know the ins and outs of this particular unit, but there are lots of situations where authority is delegated or there are multiple approvers in a work unit. I'm an approver (in a different agency). And my "approval" is literally clicking a box inside a system and then hitting the approve button. But I have limited authority. Something is very wrong when $100 million can go out the door like this. Especially since it seems this was an MWR unit - Morale, Welfare, and Recreation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Often embezzlers steal for the thrill and believe they are smarter than everyone else. (Different from embezzlers who start stealing because of gambling, addiction or some other financial/debt trigger). This extreme embezzlement seems to support funding the IRS’s criminal investigation/fraud detection divisions. As for Army/Defense Department- how can this much money go missing without notice?!?!

This reminds me of this video/interview, the DoD woman was so arrogant and dismissive of the questions. Shows how if you incompetent people like that high up you lead to waste.

https://youtu.be/50MusF365U0?si=_akjvxIvytkOpC4b

[Anonymous]

Thank you for sharing the Jon Stewart clip. I miss him. And have long admired his efforts to advocate for the rank and file. As for the DoD deputy, her defensive responses to the basic of basic questions was not a good look.

[Anonymous]

31 properties - were they all just sitting empty? And where does one keep 80 automobiles?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:31 properties - were they all just sitting empty? And where does one keep 80 automobiles?

Yeah. She had a greed problem. Hoarding houses? So weird.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Soo...no comments on the $3.2 million Preston, MD home being seized from a DMV fed? Looks palatial.

https://homesoftherich.net/2022/10/this-58-acre-estate-is-a-car-collectors-dream-photos/
Mello - https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12951897/amp/Janet-Mello-military-freed-without-bail.html

Wow, what a story! As an accountant, this is the kind of story I live to read. Good ol’ American greed!

It’s hilarious that they listed her job opening in the Daily Mail article, lol.

This lady sure did have great taste. Aston Martins, Maseratis, Range Rovers, beautiful real estate. I bet it felt good to her for the short while that it lasted.

[Anonymous]

My husband would never be able to walk straight if that were his garage.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Soo...no comments on the $3.2 million Preston, MD home being seized from a DMV fed? Looks palatial.

https://homesoftherich.net/2022/10/this-58-acre-estate-is-a-car-collectors-dream-photos/
Mello - https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12951897/amp/Janet-Mello-military-freed-without-bail.html

Wow, what a story! As an accountant, this is the kind of story I live to read. Good ol’ American greed!

It’s hilarious that they listed her job opening in the Daily Mail article, lol.

This lady sure did have great taste. Aston Martins, Maseratis, Range Rovers, beautiful real estate. I bet it felt good to her for the short while that it lasted.

She would've gotten away with it had her shell company filed and paid corporate taxes with the IRS. And when she was running this scam, US corporate taxes were at their lowest level in modern history (low 20s). All she had to do was break off a fifth for Uncle Sam and buy 20% fewer homes and cars. She could've moved this money overseas.

I mean, maybe the Pentagon would've gotten around to auditing the shell company to see if the services for kids were actually provided at some point. But they just seem too incompetent to have caught on to her scam.

Had she paid her taxes and ended the scam after 5 years, she would have gotten away with it.