Connecticut Woman Sentenced for Theft from Health Care Benefit Program

 PORTLAND, Maine—A Connecticut woman was sentenced today in federal court for theft from a health care benefit program, Acting U.S. Attorney Donald E. Clark announced.

U.S. District Judge John A. Woodcock, Jr. sentenced Melissa Tansey, 51, to one year and one day in prison and three years of supervised release. She was also ordered to pay $162,135.08 in restitution to the victim. She pleaded guilty on March 31, 2021.

According to court records, beginning in March 2013, Tansey was employed as the sole administrative assistant and bookkeeper with a health care provider based in Falmouth. Beginning in November 2013, she began making unauthorized charges on the provider’s credit cards. In December 2013, she began writing unauthorized checks to herself. She would create fraudulent entries in the provider’s accounting software to make it appear that the payments were for legitimate expenses. This theft continued until January 2018, when the provider learned of her activity.

The FBI investigated the case.