A Uniondale woman was convicted Friday for her role in a $75,000 bank loan fraud scheme, officials said.
Janelle DeFreitas was found guilty of second-degree grand larceny and third-degree criminal possession of a forged instrument, though she was acquitted of an additional forged-instrument charge, according to the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office.
Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly described DeFreitas as “a serial grifter,” stating that the defendant repeatedly moved from one fraudulent scheme to another. Donnelly noted that this is DeFreitas’ second felony conviction for a financial crime in less than a decade and said she launched the fraudulent loan scheme just over a year after being released from custody on prior charges.
Prosecutors said that between June 29, 2021, and Jan. 18, 2022, DeFreitas used multiple accomplices to apply for express business loans at several Dime Bank branches under false pretenses.
In the first attempt, DeFreitas and another individual applied at a Queens Dime Bank branch for several business loans totaling more than $400,000. Since loan applicants must have active bank accounts, they opened four accounts for companies that were all supposedly based at a single Brooklyn address. DeFreitas was listed as an authorized signer.
She also provided corporate documents she claimed were New York State certificates of incorporation. When a branch manager attempted to verify the businesses at the listed address, they found no active operations, prompting the bank to deny the loans and close the accounts. Investigators later confirmed the documents were fraudulent.
On Aug. 19, 2021, DeFreitas attempted to secure another $100,000 express loan at a Dime Bank in Garden City using a false name and a different purported business owner. The loan was denied the same day.
Between June 29 and Aug. 19, 2021, DeFreitas was linked to five account openings and six failed loan applications, investigators said.
Just days later, between Aug. 24 and 30, DeFreitas—again using a false identity—returned to the Garden City branch with a third individual and opened an account for a company called Katrina the Movie 1 Inc., claiming the man was its president. A loan application stated the business generated over $1.2 million in annual sales. The bank approved a $75,000 loan on Aug. 27, and the funds were deposited into the account on Aug. 30. Authorities said DeFreitas used fraudulent documents, including a forged TD Bank statement, to secure the loan.
DeFreitas later repeated her scheme in September 2021 at Webster Bank and again in January 2022 at a Dime Bank in Westbury, using previously submitted fraudulent corporate documents. The January loan request was denied.
As a second felony offender, DeFreitas faces up to 7½ to 15 years in prison. She is scheduled to be sentenced on Dec. 18.
