Manhattan District Attorney Alvin L. Bragg Jr. today announced the guilty plea of JUAN VELEZ, 35, a former personal banker at Citibank, for stealing approximately $166,000 from a 79-year-old client who was suffering from dementia between April 2022 and April 2023.
VELEZ pleaded guilty in New York State Supreme Court to one count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree. Under the terms of his plea, he is expected to be sentenced on December 3, 2024, to a promised sentence of 6 months in jail followed by 5 years of probation, forfeiture of the motorcycle purchased with stolen funds, and a judgment order for Citibank.
“Today, Juan Velez is facing accountability for abusing his position as a personal banker to steal from a 79-year-old man suffering from dementia,” said District Attorney Bragg. “We are committed to protecting older New Yorkers from fraudsters who target their well-earned savings. I urge any older adult who may be a victim of a crime to call our Elder Abuse Unit at 212-335-9007 or email EAU@dany.nyc.gov, where our skilled team of prosecutors and analysts are here to help you.”
According to court documents, statements made on the record in court and as admitted in the defendant’s guilty plea, VELEZ abused his position as a personal banker at a Citibank location on the Lower East Side to gain unauthorized access to the account of a 79-year-old man suffering from dementia and steal approximately $166,000 between April 2022 and April 2023.
VELEZ set up fake electronic payment accounts in the name of the customer and used them to transfer money to himself. VELEZ used some of these funds to purchase a Harley-Davidson motorcycle. He also directly paid off some of his own credit cards using the customer’s account.
The customer frequently visited the branch, often several times per week, and demonstrated extreme confusion about the state of his finances. During the time of the theft, VELEZ told his supervisor several times that he spent so much time helping the elderly customer because the customer had memory problems and did not understand the state of his finances.
Assistant D.A. Raphaelle Monty (Deputy Chief of the Elder Abuse Unit) is handling the prosecution of this case under the supervision of Assistant D.A.s Jeanine Launay (Chief of the Elder Abuse Unit) and Shannon Lucey (Deputy Chief of the Special Victims Division), and Executive Assistant D.A. Justin McNabney (Chief of the Special Victims Division).
Director Steven Moran (High Tech Analysis Unit), Elder Abuse Analyst Genevieve Rupp and Former Elder Abuse Analyst Emily Becker provided valuable assistance in this case.
D.A. Bragg thanked the NYPD and Homeland Security El Dorado Financial Crimes Taskforce, particularly Special Agent David Webster of Homeland Security and Detective James Frascatore of the NYPD.
Defendant Information:
JUAN VELEZ
Hoboken, New Jersey
Convicted:
- Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a class C felony, one count
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