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The Williston Times, Friday, June 15, 2018
WT
Son stole $4.5M from mom: Singas Samuel Bernstein of Roslyn Heights charged with theft to allegedly fund lavish lifestyle BY A M E L I A C A M U R AT I
PHOTO COURTESY OF NASSAU COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY
Samuel Bernstein, 24, of Roslyn, was charged with grand larceny for allegedly stealing more than $4.5 million from his mother’s bank account.
A Roslyn Heights man was arrested last Wednesday for allegedly stealing more than $4.5 million from his mother’s bank account to fund his lavish lifestyle, including a $100,000 bottle of champagne and Super Bowl box seats, Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas said. Samuel Bernstein, 24, of Roslyn Heights, was arraigned Thursday by District Court Judge William Hohauser on charges of firstdegree grand larceny and second-degree aggravated harassment. An order of protection was also issued for Bernstein’s mother, Donna Bernstein, 68, of Roslyn Heights. “This defendant is accused of pilfering his mother’s bank account for at least two years and using that money to fly on private jets and buy $100,000 bottles
of champagne,” Singas said. “The victim set aside this money to support a charitable cause, but because of her son’s alleged actions more than $4.5 million was wasted on extravagant expenses.” Bail was set at $750,000 or $650,000 cash, and Samuel was indicted Wednesday on the two counts. The trial was moved from Nassau County First District Court to Nassau County Supreme Court. If convicted he faces a maximum sentence of up to 25 years in prison. According to Singas, Samuel also allegedly threatened via text message on Thursday to harm a law enforcement officer’s family member and to destroy his mother’s home. Based on the Nassau County District Attorney’s office investigation, Samuel allegedly stole $4.5 million from a personal bank account controlled by his mother to fund a charity for wheelchair-
bound tennis players. Singas said Samuel allegedly began accessing his mother’s account electronically in June 2015, and his mother became aware of the missing funds in April of 2017 and filed a complaint in Manhattan. Singas said the proceeds were allegedly used to pay for night clubs, hotels," private jets, Super Bowl box seats, rent and a $100,000 bottle of champagne. Samuel also allegedly used mobile payment services such as PayPal and Venmo to transfer money to various bank accounts and obtain cash from the transfers. Samuel also allegedly used the funds to pay off credit card that belonged to his friends. Reach reporter Amelia Camurati by email at acamurati@theislandnow. com, by phone at 516-3071045, ext. 215, or follow her on Twitter @acamurati.
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