Woman pleads guilty in East St. Louis federal court to scamming her own grandmother
A woman has pleaded guilty in the U.S. Court for the Southern District of Illinois to scamming her own grandmother out of more than $300,000.
Tanya M. Aboseada, 38, of Pompano Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty to 12 counts of wire fraud Wednesday at the federal courthouse in East St. Louis. Her grandmother, a Cahokia Heights resident, was identified in court records only as M.A.
According to the indictment against her, Aboseada convinced her grandmother to wire money into her bank account under false pretenses on at least 12 occasions between November 2021 and August 2022.
Aboseada lied to her grandmother about needing money to transfer a truck title into her name, owing money to the IRS, paying attorney fees and fines for a vehicular accident she was in, and paying the family of an alleged child she killed in a vehicular accident to avoid going to jail.
To obtain the funds, wire transfers were made from multiple banks in both the metro-east and Chesterfield, Missouri.
She used the money to purchase items for herself and friends and to pay off other expenses, the indictment alleged.
In total, Aboseada admitted to stealing $317,049 from her grandmother.
“Older Americans are too often the target of scammers who hide behind computer screens while stealing money. But criminals who steal the hard-earned life savings of their own family members demonstrate an even greater disregard for this vulnerable population,” said FBI Springfield Field Office Special Agent in Charge David Nanz in a news release.
Wire fraud is punishable by up to 20 years in prison per count. Aboseada’s sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 13.
This case was brought as part of the Department of Justice’s Elder Justice Initiative.
The FBI Springfield Field Office conducted the investigation. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Scott Verseman and Kathleen Howard are prosecuting the case.
