Peaches Stergo admits to stealing $2.8 million from Holocaust survivor

A heartless Florida woman admitted to scamming an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor she met on a dating site out of a jaw-dropping $2.8 million, federal prosecutors announced.

Peaches Stergo’s years-long fraud cost the elderly victim his life savings while she lived a life of luxury that included a house in a gated community, a Corvette, lavish vacations and designer items, including Rolex watches, the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York said in a Friday news release.

In total, the victim signed off on 62 checks totaling almost $3 million that went right into Stergo’s coffers and he ultimately lost his apartment from the romance scam.

Starting in early 2017 — after the 36-year-old woman met the man on a dating site — she asked the victim to borrow money to pay her lawyer who she said refused to fork over funds from an injury settlement, according to the feds.

She claimed the funds were put into a TD Bank account, but evidence indicates she never received a cent from a supposed injury settlement.

Over the next four-and-a-half years, Stergo’s web of lies steadily continued, draining the Holocaust survivor of his final pennies.

She demanded the victim deposit money into her bank accounts because she claimed if not, they would be frozen and he would never get any of the money back that he loaned her, the US Attorney’s Office said.

He continued loading money into two accounts belonging to Stergo, who at one point even created a fake email account and fake invoices that were supposed to look like it came from a TD Bank employee, the feds said.

Stergo pleaded guilty to one count of wire fraud and faces up to 20 years in prison. She was also ordered to pay $2.8 million in restitution and forfeit the same amount, including the more than 100 luxury items she bought including designer clothes, purses and lots of jewelry. 

“Peaches Stergo stole the life savings from an 87-year-old Holocaust survivor who was just looking for companionship.  This conduct is sick – and sad,” US Attorney Damian Williams said in a statement. “… Thanks to the hard work of the FBI and this Office, Stergo is being held accountable for her fraud.”

Stergo also bought a boat and other cars on top of the house and Corvette she purchased. Some of the fancy items she scooped included from companies like Tiffany, Ralph Lauren, Neiman Marcus, Louis Vuitton and Hermes. 

She’ll be sentenced July 27.