Army civilian employee at Fort Sam Houston sentenced for stealing $108M from grants

EL PASO, Texas ( KTSM ) — An Army civilian employee who stole over $108 million from a grant program designed to provide services to military dependents and their families was sentenced to 15 years in prison for five counts of mail fraud and five counts of filing a false tax return, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.

The sentence was handed down in a San Antonio court on Tuesday, July 23.

According to court documents, Janet Yamanaka Mello, 57, worked as a financial program manager for Installation Management Command with Child and Youth Services at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio.

In or around December 2016 through at least Aug. 29, 2023, Mello formed a business she called Child Health and Youth Lifelong Development (CHYLD), according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

The sole purpose of her business was to receive grant funds from the 4-H Military Partnership Grant program, which Mello fraudulently secured by way of her position as a CYS financial program manager, according to the U.S. Attorney’s office.

Once Mello received a grant check, she deposited the check into her bank account, spending the money on clothing, jewelry, vehicles, and real estate, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

Court documents indicate that Mello repeated the process 49 times during a six-year period, requesting approximately $117 million in payments, and receiving approximately $108.9 million, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Subsequently, Mello failed to accurately report her income for tax years 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, and 2022, omitting millions of dollars in income fraudulently received through her business, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

“Janet Mello betrayed the trust of the government agency she served and repeatedly lied in an effort to enrich herself,” said U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza for the Western District of Texas. “Rather than $109 million in federal funds going to the care of military children throughout the world, she selfishly stole that money to buy extravagant houses, more than 80 vehicles, and over 1,500 pieces of jewelry. Her actions reflect exactly the opposite of what it means to serve your country, and my office will continue to work tirelessly to prosecute those who illegally seek personal gain at the expense of their fellow citizens.”

“Corruption and fraud in U.S. Army programs jeopardize the safety and security of our Soldiers and their families. When discovered, fraudulent activities by Army employees will not be tolerated, and those involved will be brought to justice,” said Special Agent in Charge Maria Thomas for the Department of the Army Criminal Investigation Division, Central Texas Field Office. “The Army community, and the public, can rest assured that we remain committed to aggressively pursuing anyone that uses government programs for their own personal gain.”

“Mello’s penchant for extravagance is what brought her down. We identified that her reported income was well below the lavish lifestyle she lived. As we uncovered the details, the criminal scheme grew, the dollar amount grew, and the reach of her spending grew,” said Acting Special Agent in Charge Lucy Tan of IRS Criminal Investigation’s Houston Field Office. “Financial crimes have victims, and this one took opportunities away from the children and families of our military men and women.”

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