Google Maps image of Burlington Subaru and Burlington Hyundai on Shelburne Road in Burlington.
by Mike Donoghue, Vermont News First, Vermont Business Magazine
A Burlington area woman has become the third person in recent months with being involved in a major unrelated embezzlement at Vermont auto dealerships.
Jennifer Labonte, 45, has struck an early deal with the U.S. Attorney's Office to plead guilty to wire fraud in connection with at least $191,000 taken from Burlington Subaru and Burlington Hyundai, federal court records show.
Labonte, a former office manager, has signed a 9-page plea agreement admitting that she diverted the money for her own use, records show.
She has agreed to reimburse the two dealerships that suffered about $191,000 in out-of-pocket expenses, court records show.
Attempts to reach Labonte were unsuccessful.
Defense lawyer Brooks McArthur said he would decline comment until at least after the arraignment.
Labonte is due in U.S. District in Rutland to formally enter her guilty plea on Oct. 30 before new Judge Mary Kay Lanthier.
The defendant, also known as Jennifer Rickert Bergeron, worked at the two car dealerships on Shelburne Road in Burlington between August 2001 and January 25, 2024, according to court papers.
She had served since about 2012 as the office manager. In that capacity, Labonte had complete oversight for all accounting matters and had check-signing authority, the plea agreement noted.
Labonte used a system named AutoMate to electronically maintain all the financial records and books. She manipulated the propriety hardware and software system, which was located outside Vermont.
Because the financial transactions crossed state lines, it became federal wire fraud, according to the investigation by the FBI in Burlington.
Beginning no later than 2013 and continuing until her separation from the dealerships, Labonte orchestrated a scheme to defraud Burlington Subaru and Burlington Hyundai, according to the criminal charge.
A large part of the scheme involved Labonte misappropriating cash receipts paid by customers to the dealerships, the charge notes.
Labonte also wrote checks to herself on the business accounts for her own benefit, including non-business-related purposes, court papers.
She also altered or attempted to alter copies of checks that she issued herself without authorization, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.
Wire fraud carries a possible penalty of up to 20 years in prison, followed by up to 3 years of federal supervised release and up to a $250,000 fine. The court also must order full restitution.
Court papers note that she is hopeful to get a break in her eventual sentence due to her cooperation when first confronted. Labonte and McArthur have agreed to allow the government to proceed without having the take the case to a federal grand jury.
She is the third former auto dealership employee to face federal fraud charges in connection with embezzlements across Vermont.
Vermont News First reported in June that Robert McLane, 35, of Websterville had been linked to nearly $600,000 stolen from Formula Nissan in Berlin while working as the automotive parts manager between 2019 and 2022, court records show.
He has pleaded guilty to mail fraud and is due for sentencing Dec. 12 before Chief Federal Judge Christina Reiss in Burlington.
Madison Craig, 30, of Whitehall, N.Y. defrauded a group of Rutland area car dealerships of at least $144,000, according to Vermont News First in July.
The former office manager agreed to plead guilty to two counts of credit card fraud in connection with losses at LAV Automotive Inc. and LDR Automotive Inc, doing business as Audi of Rutland, Volkswagen of Rutland and Dodge Ram of Rutland between Sept. 29, 2022 and Feb. 3, 2023, court records show.
There was a subsequent embezzlement at Oliver Subaru in Rutland Town in 2023 when she was office controller, records show.
She is awaiting sentencing Jan. 3 by Judge Reiss in Burlington.
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