Crime

Former St. Croix Resident Pleads Guilty To Federal Program Fraud And Tax Charges

ST. THOMAS -- Celeste P. Bermudez, 41, formerly of St. Croix, pleaded guilty today to theft of federal program funds and making and subscribing a false income tax return, Acting United States Attorney Joycelyn Hewlett announced. District Judge Curtis V. Gomez allowed Bermudez to remain on bail until August 1, 2017, when she must selfsurrender to the United States Marshals Service. Sentencing is scheduled for August 8, 2017. According to the plea agreement, Bermudez was the finance director of the Virgin Islands Community AIDS Resource & Education, Inc. (VICARE), a nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting HIV-AIDS education and support services to individuals living with HIV-AIDS. In 2011, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) approved approximately $1.3 million in grant funds to VICARE. During the period July 1, 2011, through June 30, 2014, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) awarded VICARE approxi...