Police: Man used dating site to steal nearly $80k from woman

Michael Benedetto, 21, who is without a residence, was arrested July 19 and charged with second-degree larceny in the Town of New Windsor Justice Court for allegedly defrauding a woman he had been dating by telling her a series of lies that induced her to give him money under false pretenses, the Orange County District Attorney’s office announced last week.

Authorities say that in June 2020, the victim met Benedetto on Bumble and they began a relationship shortly thereafter.

During their time together, Benedetto allegedly lied to the victim about needing money for his sick dog, medical procedures, moving costs due to a new home purchase and more.

The victim reported a loss of approximately $80,000 to the Orange County Sheriff’s office.

Benedetto, who had not yet entered a plea as this paper went to print, faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted. Due to recent changes in the law, bail cannot be set in the case.

The investigation was opened under the auspices of the Orange County Joint White Collar Crimes Task Force, which was created in March. Since its creation, police from the Town of Woodbury and the Town of Warwick are among the agencies that have joined the task force.

The task force allows agencies to share investigative resources on white collar and other complex criminal investigations.