Date: November 18, 2021 Contact: newsroom@ci.irs.gov Santa Ana, CA — A federal grand jury today returned a 15-count indictment that accuses the former controller for two Anaheim-based companies of embezzling more than $3 million by directing the transfer of company funds to bank accounts that she controlled. Rosalba Meza, also known as "Rosalba Sceville," of Coto de Caza, who was arrested earlier this month pursuant to a criminal complaint filed by prosecutors, is scheduled to be arraigned on the indictment on November 29 in United States District Court. From May 2017 through the end of 2019, Meza allegedly made unauthorized transfers – currently estimated to total $3,071,880 – from bank accounts belonging to Trilogy Plumbing, Inc. and a related company called Matrix Management, LLC. In February 2019, Meza told executives their companies did not have funds to meet payroll obligations and failed to inform the executives that she had been embezzling from the companies, the indictment alleges. Several months later, while the companies were the subject of an IRS enforcement action because of unpaid payroll taxes, Meza falsely told the executives that she did not pay the quarterly payroll taxes because she instead had used those funds to pay employees, according to the indictment. The indictment alleges that, once the funds were transferred to her accounts, Meza used the stolen money to make approximately $292,137 in cash withdrawals at bank branches and more than $1 million in withdrawals at ATMs in the United States and Mexico. Meza also allegedly wired approximately $870,209 to bank accounts in Mexico owned by a family member and another $250,000 in transfers to other family members and friends. The indictment also alleges that Meza filed tax returns for the years 2017 through 2019 that failed to report as income the embezzled funds. The indictment charges Meza with eight counts of wire fraud, four counts of money laundering and three counts of subscribing to a false tax return. The wire fraud charges carry a statutory maximum penalty of 20 years in federal prison, while the money laundering and tax counts carry potential penalties of 10 years and three years, respectively. An indictment contains allegations that a defendant has committed a crime. Every defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. IRS Criminal Investigation and the FBI are conducting the investigation in this matter. Special Assistant United States Attorney Ryan G. Adams of the Santa Ana Branch Office is prosecuting this case.
