Dive Brief:
- The former CFO of Maccaferri Inc. — a U.S.-based subsidiary of an Italian company — is facing charges of wire and immigration fraud and aggravated identity theft in relation to an embezzlement scheme, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Maryland announced in a Monday press release.
- Teresa Desy Majo, the former finance chief for the North American arm of Officine Maccaferri S.p.A., impersonated the identities of multiple company executives to “fraudulently approve alleged employment benefits and compensation to enrich herself,” according to the release.
- Such benefits included reimbursement for in vitro fertilization as well as tuition expenses for the Columbia Business School Chief Financial Officer program, according to the indictment filed May 27 with the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland.
Dive Insight:
From at least 2021 until her firing in 2024, Majo, a legal permanent resident from Italy, served for the North American arm of Officine Maccaferri S.p.A, a global manufacturer of engineering solutions specializing in soil stabilization headquartered in Italy, according to the indictment. The company has two subsidiaries: Maccaferri, headquartered in Hagerstown, Maryland, and Maccaferri Canada, according to the indictment.
During that three-year period, Majo perpetuated a scheme to “unjustly enrich herself” via payments from both subsidiaries, posing as four employees of the company to approve unwarranted employment benefits and compensation, the indictment alleges.
As part of the scheme, Majo manufactured documents and “modified” emails from other company executives to authorize those benefits.
In one instance, in or about June 2021, Majo fabricated an email from the CFO of Maccaferri Italy, identified as “Person 4” in the indictment, to receive about $28,000 from Maccaferri Canada for tuition expenses associated with the Columbia Business School’s CFO program. In another example where she impersonated the company’s CFO, she fabricated an email in or about March 2023 to obtain a $53,875 payment from its USA subsidiary used as reimbursement for in-vitro fertilization.
The indictment also identifies instances where Majo fabricated emails from the CEO of Maccaferri Italy, or “Person 3,” for bonus payments, including a $35,000 such payment from Maccaferri Canada. She also fabricated communications from at least two members of the finance department which reported to Majo as CFO.
Throughout the three-year period, Majo also received foreign and interstate wire communications from Italy and other locations outside of Maryland. Those include three counts of wire fraud, where Majo deposited two checks for the amounts of $14,000 and one check for $25,000 into a Maccaferri-controlled bank account in Maryland before the funds were wired to outside locations. She authorized such payments by utilizing the names of “Person 4” and “Person 3,” per the indictment.
The company “suffered a financial loss exceeding $550,000” relating to the scheme to defraud, according to the indictment.
Majo was fired from Maccaferri in 2024, which she concealed from the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the indictment also alleges. During an interview with the USCIS on or about Feb. 10, 2025, Majo — who applied for permanent residency in 2023 stating she was an employee of Maccaferri USA — intentionally concealed her firing, the indictment states.
Majo entered a plea of not guilty during an arraignment hearing on Monday before Magistrate Judge J. Mark Coulson, according to court documents.
If convicted, Majo faces a maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison related to the wire fraud charges, according to the release. She could also face a mandatory consecutive two-year sentence related to the aggravated identity theft charge, and a maximum 10-year sentence for possession of a perjured immigration document.
Stuart Berman, principal with Lerch Early & Brewer and attorney for Majo, declined to comment on the case. The DOJ declined to comment.
