(SUFFOLK COUNTY, N.Y.) – Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney announced that Jazzame Paranzino, 31, of Shirley, was sentenced today to four months in jail followed by five years of probation for stealing money from the accounts of 11 Maryhaven group home residents who were in her care. As a condition of her sentence, Paranzino is required to fully repay the victims their money that was stolen from them.
“This defendant stole funds from individuals with severe disabilities in need of 24-hour care. The individuals and their families trusted the defendant and instead of honoring that trust, she stole thousands of dollars from them for her own personal use,” said Tierney. “I thank the staff of the Maryhaven facility and the Financial Crimes Unit Detectives for their thorough investigation in this case and for helping us to hold this defendant responsible for her actions.”
According to the investigation and the guilty plea allocution, from January 2020 to March 2021, Paranzino stole funds from the bank accounts of 11 residents while she was working as the site manager for Maryhaven Center of Hope, a residential facility in Medford. This residence houses severely developmentally disabled adults who are unable to care for themselves in many ways, including managing their own finances.
As site manager, Paranzino had control of and access to the 11 residents’ bank accounts and their debit cards. One of her responsibilities was to withdraw money to place in each residents’ petty cash envelope so they could go on outings to eateries and local stores. In addition, she was able to withdraw money for various expenditures for home goods for each resident, such as furniture and electronics. Paranzino took that money out of the bank but did not use it for the residents or make the purchases for which the money was intended. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, there were no outings for the residents and in house activities were limited, so Paranzino took money from all of their bank accounts under the guise of purchasing items that they needed. Between January 2020 to March 2021, she stole over $50,000 from the residents.
On December 21, 2022, Paranzino pleaded guilty before Supreme Court Justice, the Honorable Timothy P. Mazzei, to Attempted Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a Class D felony.
During her sentencing on April 6, 2023, Judge Mazzei also ordered Paranzino to pay restitution in the amount of $50,744, to be paid through probation. She was represented by Mark Silverman, Esq.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Deirdre Horney of the Financial Crime Bureau.