Ex-Yale employee gets nine years in prison after admitting to stealing $40M from university

A former Yale University School of Medicine employee was sentenced to more than nine years in prison after she admitted to the theft of $40 million in computer and electronic hardware from the university.

Jamie Petrone, 42, was sentenced on Thursday. Her sentence will be followed by three years of supervised release. Petrone pleaded guilty to one count of filing a false tax return and one count of wire fraud on March 28. 

She was arrested on Sept. 3, 2021.

Petrone, through her job at Yale University, made and authorized purchases for her department that were priced below $10,000. She began stealing from the university in 2013, when she ordered or caused other people to order electronics from university vendors that were worth millions of dollars, according to the Department of Justice, which added that she used university funds to make the purchases.

Orders below $10,000 don’t require additional approval, according to the DOJ.

At the time, Petrone was the director of finance and administration for the Yale University School of Medicine Department of Emergency Medicine.

In total, Petrone caused a loss of $40,504,200 to Yale, according to the DOJ.

The DOJ said Petrone used the money to buy “various personal expenses, including expensive cars, real estate and travel.”

Petrone failed to pay taxes on the money she received from 2013 to 2016, and she falsely claimed business expenses, causing a loss of $6,416,618 to the U.S. Treasury, according to the DOJ.

Yale School of Medicine, across the road from Yale-New Haven Hospital, New Haven, Connecticut. (Getty Images)

The DOJ also stated that she would ship the electronics to an out-of-state business in exchange for money. That out-of-state company, according to the DOJ, is Maziv Entertainment LLC., where Petrone is a principal.

Petrone agreed to forfeit some of her assets, including multiple cars, in addition to $560,421.14 from Maziv Entertainment LLC.

“Petrone has agreed to forfeit $560,421.14 that was seized from the Maziv Entertainment LLC bank account, a 2014 Mercedes-Benz G550, a 2017 Land Rover/Range Rover Sv Autobiography, a 2015 Cadillac Escalade Premium, a 2020 Mercedes Benz Model E450A, a 2016 Cadillac Escalade (4 Door Sport), and a 2018 Dodge Charger,” the DOJ said.

In addition, Petrone also agreed to “the liquidation of three Connecticut properties that she owns or co-owns to help satisfy her restitution obligation.”

A property owned by Petrone in Georgia “is also subject to seizure and liquidation,” the DOJ said.

Frank Riccio, Petrone’s attorney, said that she is sorry for her actions and accepts responsibility for what she did.

“Today in court, Ms. Petrone profoundly apologized to Yale University for her inexcusable actions,” Riccio said. “She continues to accept responsibility and intends on continuing with making restitution.”

A Yale University spokesperson told Fox News Digital that it has implemented multiple changes after the incident.

“Yale thanks law enforcement at all levels for their handling of this case,” the spokesperson said. “Since the incident, the university has adopted additional measures to detect fraud; redesigned business processes; and improved financial reporting, analytics, and training.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.