ALLENTOWN, Pa. — An Allentown title insurer could face decades in prison after admitting in federal court to stealing millions of dollars from clients while selling their homes.
Louis Belletieri, 43, pleaded guilty this week to two counts of wire fraud, according to federal prosecutors, who also alleged he submitted a fraudulent application for loans from the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Belletieri was arraigned in October 2023 on a dozen state racketeering-related charges; he was hit with dozens more charges in May 2024.
Between March 2020 and September 2023, Belletieri transferred $6.4 million from the escrow account to a personal account and $2.4 million to a business account.State and federal prosecutors
State and federal prosecutors alleged Belletieri stole millions of dollars from an escrow account with funds from home sales he oversaw as the owner and only employee of Liberty Title, which operated out of an office complex at 2030 W. Tilghman St.
From March 2020 to September 2023, he transferred $6.4 million from the escrow account to a personal account and $2.4 million to a business account, authorities said.
Belletieri also secured about $825,000 through a fraudulent application for federal Economic Injury Disaster Loans, according to prosecutors.
He used that money for personal expenses and “to place online sports bets,” according to a release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Belletieri is scheduled to be sentenced Sept. 12. He faces a maximum term of 40 years in prison.
Belletieri is the son of the late Louis Belletieri, who owned Louie’s Restaurant on 31st Street in Allentown.
The elder Belletieri pleaded guilty in 2020 to tax evasion charges, court records show.
