Funds Stolen in Sophisticated Phishing Scam to be Returned to CSWD After Federal Forfeiture
From CSWD Press Release
Chittenden Solid Waste District (CSWD) and the United States Attorney’s Office District of Vermont have announced that more than $2.27 million in funds stolen in a January 2026 cyber‑enabled fraud scheme will be returned to the district. The Office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Vermont obtained a civil forfeiture judgment, and the U.S. Marshal’s Service will transfer the recovered funds back to CSWD.
What happened:
In late January 2026 CSWD received an email that redirected payments for the construction of a new $38 million Materials Recycling Facility (MRF). Acting on those instructions, CSWD sent two payments – totaling more than $3 million – to a Citibank account that, it soon became clear, was part of a sophisticated fraud scheme.
CSWD immediately reported this incident to the district’s bank and to law enforcement. Federal authorities, including the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, initiated a process to seize the stolen funds in the Citibank account.
A federal judge signed the order of forfeiture and judgment on July 2, 2026, for $2,270,202.39. Per the settlement, those funds will be returned to CSWD by the U.S. Marshal’s Service.
“We are relieved and grateful that law enforcement’s swift work has returned these funds to CSWD. We also want this incident to serve as an educational moment for other organizations to be vigilant, strengthen controls, and report suspected fraud immediately,” said Sarah Reeves, Executive Director of CSWD. “The recovered funds will be returned to the district and used as originally intended, which is to help fund the construction of our new, state-of-the-art Materials Recycling Facility, scheduled to open in early spring.”
For more on the new MRF, visit CSWD.net.