Dorchester woman pleads guilty to stealing from realty company, tenants

BOSTON, August 15, 2023 – A Dorchester woman charged with stealing more than $100,000 from a realty company over the course of a year by overcharging tenants pleaded guilty to larceny in West Roxbury BMC, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin Hayden announced.

STACEY SANCHEZ-MERCEDES, 29, pleaded guilty to one count of larceny over $1,200 on Friday. Judge Margaret Albertson sentenced Sanchez-Mercedes to a two-year continuance without a finding and to stay away from all victims, witnesses, and Alliance Realty. Sanchez-Mercedes will return to court on October 10 for a restitution hearing.

On December 9, 2022, members of the Alliance Realty management team reported to Boston police that a former employer, later identified as Sanchez-Mercedes, committed numerous fraudulent transactions with clients over a one-year period.

On December 21, 2022, detectives met with a member of the realty company and received multiple copies of rental agreements that were altered by Sanchez-Mercedes. The company reported Sanchez-Mercedes would overcharge tenants by asking for a security deposit in the amount of $2,000 and then change the amount to $1,000, keeping the rest for herself. She also charged for fees that the realty company did not usually charge for such as broker fees.  Sanchez-Mercedes was not a licensed broker.

Sanchez-Mercedes also fabricated fake eviction notices, applied for RAFT rental relief on behalf of her tenants, and had tenants deposit money using Zelle into her personal bank account. Other tenants reported to Alliance Realty they were instructed by Sanchez-Mercedes to take their rent money to a barbershop on Washington Street in Roslindale and give it to a man named “George.” This man would provide them with a paper receipt, similar to the receipts Sanchez-Mercedes provided to the other victims.  However that money was never paid to Alliance Realty.

The majority of the rental properties Sanchez-Mercedes worked on were located in Hyde Park, Dorchester, and Roxbury. Sanchez-Mercedes worked for Alliance Realty for about three years and was terminated on December 2, 2022.

“This individual took advantage of her position and used an elaborate scheme to fill her pockets with workplace receipts and the hard-earned money of trusting tenants. Like many who have come before here, she thought she could steal from her workplace and her customers and not get caught. And like many who have come before her, she found out she was very, very wrong,” Hayden said.

 

All charged individuals are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden’s office serves the communities of Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, Mass. The office handles over 20,000 cases a year. More than 160 attorneys in the office practice in nine district and municipal courts, Suffolk Superior Court, the Massachusetts Appeals Court, the Supreme Judicial Court, and the Boston Juvenile Courts. The office employs some 300 people and offers a wide range of services and programs to serve anyone who comes in contact with the criminal justice system. This office is committed to educating the public about the services we provide, our commitment to crime prevention, and our dedication to keeping the residents of Suffolk County safe.

James Borghesani, Chief of Communications

SCDAO