U.S. Virgin Islands – V.I. Attorney General Ariel M. Smith announces that on October 25, 2023, a conviction and judgment was entered against Rosemary-Sauter Frett, a real estate agent charged with embezzling millions of dollars from clients between 2008-2010 in the U.S. Virgin Islands. Sauter-Frett was sentenced in the Superior Court of the Virgin Islands in the St. Thomas district.
In 2010, Sauter-Frett fled the territory, and a warrant was issued for her arrest. She was eventually extradited from California in 2014 and initially entered a plea of not guilty. On August 1, 2023, she changed her not guilty plea to a plea of no contest to the acts of drawing and delivering worthless checks and agreed to pay restitution of $564,355.65 to 21 victims. Sauter-Frett was previously incarcerated for almost 8 months and has thereafter been electronically monitored with an ankle bracelet for several years. Her judgment and conviction include several conditions – including her remaining subject to electronic monitoring, which she pays for until restitution is paid in full. Sauter-Frett is also required to sell two properties she owns on St. Thomas to satisfy the restitution requirement. She is not allowed to work or volunteer in any position involving trust, authority, or fiduciary responsibility and must complete 75 hours of community service each year that she remains on probation.
“Justice has finally been served. I commend our Department of Justice prosecution team and truly hope this sentencing provides some degree of closure to the victims of her actions. The White-Collar Crime Division makes every effort to prosecute these defendants in a manner that is most beneficial to the victims, particularly when they are owed large sums of money. In this case, while incarceration would have been appropriate, the victims will be made whole once restitution is paid. If restitution is not made, probation may be revoked, and a five-year prison sentence may be imposed,” said AG Smith.
