Linda Minervini and Thomas Cacaci Jr.allegedly purchased a time share in Las Vegas with stolen money
MINEOLA, N.Y. – Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced that a paralegal from Las Vegas, Nevada and her husband were arraigned today for allegedly stealing more than $900,000 from a construction company based in Lynbrook, N.Y.
Linda Minervini, 53, and Thomas Cacaci Jr., 37, were arraigned today before Acting Supreme Court Justice Meryl Berkowitz on an indictment charging them with Grand Larceny in the 2nd Degree (a C felony) and 20 counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the 2nd Degree (a D felony).
Bail was set at $1,000,000 bond or $500,000 cash for Minervini and $300,000 bond or $200,000 cash for Cacaci. If convicted, Minervini faces a maximum 7-1/2 to 15 years in prison and Cacaci faces an indeterminate sentence of five to 15 years in prison.
The defendants were living in Las Vegas and arrested by Las Vegas Police on December 9. They waived extradition and were transported by district attorney investigators to New York to face the charges.
“These defendants scammed more than $900,000 from a construction company and used the money for a timeshare, car expenses, and legal fees,” said DA Singas. “When employees embezzle, they should expect to be fully prosecuted by my office.”
DA Singas said that Minervini was employed as a paralegal for a Lynbrook-based construction company. As part of her responsibilities, Minervini was authorized to settle liability construction claims under $10,000 and obtained general releases of liability from the claimants involved and sent them their settlement checks.
Between October 2009 and November 2015, the defendant allegedly embezzled $913,315 from the company by creating checks to pay claims that did not actually exist. The checks were then signed by the victim, who did not know they were fraudulent and allegedly altered by adding other payees to them without the knowledge or consent of her employer. At the beginning of the alleged scheme, many of the checks were made out to Cacaci, who then allegedly assisted in depositing them into the account of a corporation he and Minervini formed in 2010 in the name of New York Emergency & First Response Inc. (“NYEFR”). Both defendants had access to the account.
The alleged scheme was discovered in November 2015 when the office manager of the company became suspicious because the quantity of checks generated for these settlements was disproportionately greater than the amount of discussion taking place within the company concerning these claimants. Minervini was subsequently fired.
The defendants allegedly spent the money on a time share in Las Vegas, where they resided until their arrest. They had moved to Las Vegas in May 2016 after living in separate residences in Queens, NY. The defendants also allegedly spent the money on expenses related to Cacaci’s parents’ Las Vegas home, household furnishings, automobiles, legal fees, airline tickets, hotel lodging and other daily living expenses.
Assistant District Attorney Peter Mancuso of DA Singas’ Government and Consumer Frauds Bureau is prosecuting the case. The defendants are represented by Danielle Rosenberg, Esq.