The ‘Gucci Goddess’ conwoman who stole $108 million from the U.S. Army to sponsor her extravagantly luxurious lifestyle, including 31 homes and 70 vehicles, officially pleaded guilty to fraud.
Janet Yamanaka Mello, 57, stole millions of dollars from military funds and blew it on jewelry, clothing, luxury vehicles and real estate in one of the biggest fraud cases the military has ever seen.
Mello was seen walking out of the federal courthouse in San Antonio with her husband Mark after she appeared before Magistrate Judge Richard Farrer and pleaded guilty to five counts of mail fraud and five charges of filing fraudulent tax returns.
She admitted, via a series of yes-or-no questions, to taking advantage of the Army’s lax controls at Installation Management Command to swipe the $108million for a bogus company she called CHYLD (Child Health and Youth Lifelong Development).
Albert Flores, Mello’s attorney, said after the hearing that this is the start of Mello taking accountability for what she’s done.
Janet Yamanaka Mello was seen walking out of the federal courthouse in San Antonio with her husband Mark after she appeared before Magistrate Judge Richard Farrer and pleaded guilty to five counts of mail fraud and five charges of filing fraudulent tax returns
Mello, 57, stole millions of dollars from military funds and blew it on jewelry, clothing, luxury vehicles and real estate in one of the biggest fraud cases the military has ever seen
‘Today was the beginning of the long process where she pled guilty,’ Flores said, according to the San Antonio Express.
‘She’s accepting responsibility for her actions. She’s very remorseful for what she’s done.’
Flores adds that Mello is collaborating with the government to get back as many of the stolen assets as they can.
‘In the end, we expect there’s going to be a large number of assets both in number and monetary value that are going to be recovered by the U.S. government,’ he predicted.
Mello is scheduled to be sentenced before District Judge Xavier Rodriguez on May 29. She remains free on bond pending sentencing.
Under the charges, Mello faces a maximum of 125 years in prison.
The hustler worked for the U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, as a CYS Financial Program Manager when she created the CHYLD shell company in 2016.
She used the firm to fraudulently swindle money that was supposed to be going toward the children of army personnel and instead used the cash to sponsor her lavish lifestyle. Package delivery men would allegedly refer to her as ‘the Gucci Goddess.’
Mello, being protected by husband Mark, admitted, via a series of yes-or-no questions, to taking advantage of the Army’s lax controls at Installation Management Command to swipe the $108million for a bogus company she called CHYLD
Mello – seen with attorney Albert Flores – worked for the U.S. Army at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas, as a CYS Financial Program Manager – where she was able to move money into her shell company
However, her scheme came crashing down in January when criminal investigators from the IRS worked with army investigators as they put the pieces of the puzzle together – before Mello was criminally indicted in December 2023.
A criminal information document filed alongside the plea deal charges Mello with five counts of mail fraud and five counts of filing a false tax return.
The maximum sentence for each count of mail fraud is 20 years in prison and each count of tax fraud could earn her up to five years behind bars.
The swindler managed to accumulate 80 vehicles and 31 properties across five states – as federal prosecutors allege she lived a life of luxury and opulence that was clearly not supported by her $130,000 a year government salary.
She reported that her company CHYLD earned a profit of $483 on revenue of $2,152 for training consultations in 2017. But since then, she has not filed any tax returns.
She often filed fraudulent paperwork – and deposited grants into her fake business 40 times, securing over $100,000,000 for herself, documents allege.
Transaction details show she wire transferred $264,874 from the account to buy herself a 2023 Land Rover Range Rover last year.
She also sent herself $3,308,157 to purchase real estate property in Canyon Lake, Texas, documents state.
Mello’s $3.1million property in Preston, Maryland. She regularly filed fraudulent paperwork and deposited grants a total of 40 times into her fake business during a six-year period, securing over $100,000,000 for herself, court documents allege
This is Mello’s $2.3million estate in Castle Rock, Colorado
This home was listed as one of the properties to seize. It cost Mello $1.1 million and is in San Antonio, Texas
Mello also owns this $870,000 home in Lakewood, Colorado. Mello had amassed a portfolio of homes in Texas, Maryland, Colorado, Washington and New Mexico – all of which, the prosecutors claim, she bought with the frauded cash
One of the sprawling mansions that drew attention to Mello was this eight-bedroom, sixteen-bathroom home in Preston, Maryland – as the IRS began to question how she afforded such lavish purchases on a $130,000 salary
The court has listed a total of 78 luxury cars and motorbikes that Mello owns – and has demanded the assets in a bill of forfeiture. They include numerous Maseratis, Ferraris, Aston Martins, Mercedes, Teslas, Harley-Davidsons and Land Rovers.
As well as vehicular assets, they have named 31 of her real properties. These span across multiple states – with mansions worth over $3 million, ranches, sprawling acres of farmland, and luxury high-rise apartments and condos.
Mello had amassed a portfolio of homes in Texas, Maryland, Colorado, Washington, and New Mexico – which, the prosecutors claim, she bought with the fraudulent cash.
Documents also claim that Mello has six bank accounts, and she held a minimum of $32,000 in each.
It was the IRS who flagged that her lifestyle – buying million-dollar homes multiple times a year – was not supported by her salary.
Mello was arrested in December, but despite the significant criminal fraud she is accused of, was allowed to leave without bail, before officials sparked outrage last month after it emerged that Mello is set to be allowed to retire with full benefits.
The military admitted there was nothing they could do to strip it from her because she was protected under a federal law that was held up in government bureaucracy.
An Army spokesman said: ‘The command has no authority to impact Ms. Mello’s retirement.’
While there are exceptions for treason and bigger offenses, ‘there is no similar statutory authority for denying retired pay based on a conviction of other offenses,’ she added.
2023 Land Rover Range Rover (file image). Transaction details show she wire transferred $264,874 from the account to buy herself the Land Rover Range Rover last year
Mello also purchased a 2003 Aston Martin Vanquish (file photo) and a 1955 Ferrari Fratelli (file photo)
Mello also owned a 1935 Plymouth Sedan (file photo) and a 2018 Maserati Granturism (file photo)
In February, the fraudster said she would forfeit all of her extravagant purchases, including her fleet of supercars and mansions, if she is found guilty of fraud.
Mello’s scathing federal indictment claims that she used the digital signature ‘S.K’ – which was not her own – on multiple signoffs while working as a CYS Financial Program Manager at Fort Sam Houston in Texas.
‘S.K’ refers to the chief of the CYS program, Suzanne King, who was Mello’s boss, reports the San Antonio Express-News.
After the scheme came to light, questions were raised over how the military failed to spot such a large sum of money being moved under their noses.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Justin Simmons said the army hadn’t conducted proper audits of her program, while others close to the investigation say that the Army just worked on the assumption of goodwill of its employees.
A source familiar with the investigation told the Express-News about the Army leaders: ‘They stove-piped the process to only one person.
‘They gave her complete carte blanche, and she found all the loopholes.’
The army had also replaced some of its administrative restrictions as part of an ‘organizational shake-up’, giving Mello autonomy in her position.
Mello’s scathing federal indictment alleged that she used the digital signature ‘S.K’ which refers to the chief of the CYS program, Suzanne King (pictured) who was Mello’s boss
An insider told the local paper: ‘It speaks to the nonchalant-ness of the command and its lack of internal controls.’
Former federal prosecutor Robert Almonte Jr. said that Mello was not even ‘discreet on her part’ and her plot was ‘nothing super complex,’ but incompetent government programs are not ‘equipped to monitor these things.’
Almonte continued: ‘In some fraud instances, they at least take steps to make sure to hide their fraud. There was no apparent attempt to hide what she was doing with the money after the fact.’