Kings County Woman Pleads Guilty to Stealing $87,000 in Social Security Benefits

From the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of California:

FRESNO, Calif. — Deborah Rossoni, 58, of Lemoore, pleaded guilty today to stealing $87,000 in Social Security payments and agreed to pay full restitution to the Social Security Administration, Acting U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert announced.

According to court documents, in July 2012, Rossoni’s father passed away, but the SSA was not notified of his death and continued direct depositing Social Security payments into his bank account until July 2018. During this time, Rossoni transferred the payments into her own bank accounts and then used the money for personal expenditures, including credit card bills and house repairs.

This case is the product of an investigation by the SSA Office of Inspector General. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Barton is prosecuting the case.

Rossoni is scheduled to be sentenced by U.S. District Judge Dale A. Drozd on Feb. 14, 2022. She faces a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. The actual sentence, however, will be determined at the discretion of the court after consideration of any applicable statutory factors and the Federal Sentencing Guidelines, which take into account several variables.