FESTUS POSTMASTER CONVICTED OF RECEIPT OF ILLEGAL GRATUITIES CHARGES

Postal Fraud and Theft

UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
June 6, 2011

FESTUS POSTMASTER CONVICTED OF RECEIPT OF ILLEGAL GRATUITIES CHARGES, MISSOURI DIRECT MAILER & POSTAL EMPLOYEE PREVIOUSLY PLED GUILTY

St. Louis, MO: The United States Attorney’s Office announced that Teresa Tremusini, Festus Postmaster, was convicted of two felony counts of Receipt of Illegal Gratuities. The owner of SG Print & Mail and two Postal employees previously entered guilty pleas in the $3.8 million scheme.

According to court documents and testimony presented at trial, Robert Scott Gray defrauded the U.S. Postal Service by falsely claiming stamps were used on bulk mailings and by concealing documentation of mailings from the Postal Service to avoid payment.

Teresa Tremusini became Postmaster of the Festus, Missouri, Post Office in December 2005. Robert Scott Gray was President and Owner of SG Print & Mail, Inc. Michael A. Jones was an employee of the U.S. Postal Service. Donna Beckman was an employee of SG Print & Mail from January 2005 to September 2007. Her duties included the preparation of the U.S. Postal Service paperwork that accompanied bulk mailings by SG Print & Mail.

SG Print & Mail provided direct mail services to clients. A client would contract with SG Print & Mail to perform a direct mailing, for example, 30,000 mail pieces. Typically, SG Print & Mail contracted with a printer to print the mail pieces. SG Print & Mail would then prepare the direct mailing by placing addresses on each mail piece and sorting the mail pieces by address/zip code for bulk mailing.

Between January 2005 and December 2006, Robert Scott Gray directed Donna Beckman to lie about the number of pre-canceled stamps that they used and to falsify the Postal forms describing how many they had used. Additionally, Gray paid Teresa Tremusini $20,000, payable in two cashier’s checks in August 2006, and in January 2007, and paid Michael Jones $10,000 cash. These payments were in return for the approval of bulk mail postal forms.

The loss to the U.S. Postal Service for these schemes total of approximately $3.8 million.

TERESA TREMUSINI, St. Louis, Missouri, was convicted on Friday, June 3, 2011, on two felony counts of receipt of illegal gratuities and is scheduled for sentencing August 26, 2011.

Robert Scott Gray, Fenton, Missouri, pled guilty in April to five felony counts of mail fraud, four felony counts of making false statements and three felony counts of giving an illegal gratuity. He is scheduled for sentencing July 13, 2011.

Michael A. Jones, Pacific, Missouri, pled guilty in March to one felony count of receipt of illegal gratuity, and will be sentenced on June 16, 2011. Donna Beckman pled guilty earlier this year to two felony counts of mail fraud and awaits sentencing on June 23, 2011.

Each count of mail fraud carries a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000. Each count of making false statements carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000. Each count of bribery carries a maximum penalty of 15 years in prison and/or fines up to $250,000. In determining the actual sentences, a Judge is required to consider the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, which provide recommended sentencing ranges.

This case was investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service and the United States Postal Service-Office of Inspector General. Assistant United States Attorney Carrie Costantin is handling the case for the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

One Response to "FESTUS POSTMASTER CONVICTED OF RECEIPT OF ILLEGAL GRATUITIES CHARGES"

  1. Knowing how the USPS works it wouldn’t surprise me if they gave her the job back once she gets out of Jail

    Kind of like the ankeny iowa post office. Postmaster Tim Humbal was sued twice for harassment. I know for a fact one law suit cost $3OO,OOO.OO to settle and I think the 2nd one cost the same. He was never supposed to come back to the ankeny post off per court order. But he is back and the postmaster! What a joke!

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