ROCKY HILL, Conn. — Two Connecticut women were arrested and charged on Wednesday with stealing a combined $11,284 from programs financed by the state’s Department of Social Services, the state’s Division of Criminal Justice reported.
Carmen Rentas, 33, of Willimantic, and Cardie Dorvil, 29, of Tolland received Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits that they were not entitled to. The incidents were not related, the Division of Criminal Justice said.
Inspectors from the Statewide Prosecution Bureau of the Office of the Chief State’s Attorney arrested the women on separate warrants. Both women were charged with first-degree larceny and two counts of false statement in the second degree.
Between Aug. 25, 2022, and July 31, 2023, Rentas received $5,364 in SNAP benefits that were not hers to take, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. To receive the benefits, Rentas allegedly underreported her income and failed to report a legally liable relative along with that relative’s income.
Rentas allegedly signed and submitted SNAP documents that included information she knew was false, the Division of Criminal Justice said, adding that she intentionally misled employees from the state’s Department of Social Services. Rentas was released on a promise to appear; she is scheduled to appear in Danielson Superior Court on April 17.
The arrest warrant affidavit states that Dorvil received $5,920 in SNAP benefits that she was not entitled to receive between April 1, 2023, and November 30, 2023, and allegedly did not report income to receive the benefits.
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The Division of Criminal Justice said Dorvil signed and submitted SNAP documents containing information she knew was false in the process of misleading employees from the Department of Social Services. Dorvil was released on a promise to appear; she is scheduled to appear in Rockville Superior Court on April 9.
The Division of Criminal Justice reminded residents that the “charges are merely accusations, and Rentas and Dorvil are presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”
The Department of Social Services’ investigative division submitted the arrest warrant applications for the arrests of both women, and the cases are being prosecuted by the Statewide Prosecution Bureau, the Division of Criminal Justice said.
Dalton Zbierski is a digital content producer at FOX61 News. He can be reached at dzbierski@FOX61.com.
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