A Long Island man was criminally charged with grand larceny and other related crimes for posing as an immigration attorney and stealing more than $15,000 from a Corona woman.
Leonardo Ferretti, 50, of Commack in Suffolk County, who is also known as Leonardo Valentino Ferretti DiSanttorelli, was arraigned in Queens Criminal Court on Jan. 21 on a criminal complaint charging him with grand larceny in the third degree, criminal possession of stolen property, unauthorized practice of law, and immigrant assistance services fraud in the first degree.
According to the charges and investigation, in December 2022, Ferretti met the victim through an online dating app and sent her a phone number to communicate with him directly on the WhatsApp messaging platform. After exchanging several messages, Ferretti met the woman in person multiple times and continued communicating with her using the messaging app. Ferretti told the victim that he was enrolled at Columbia Law School and was preparing to take the bar exam in 2023. Ferretti then sent the Corona woman a photograph of a business card identifying himself as a “Juris Doctor Candidate, Class of 2022 at Columbia Law School in the City of New York.” The business card listed the same cell phone number he had provided to her earlier as well as an email address at law.columbia.edu as his contact information.
Several months later, in April 2023, Ferretti messaged the victim that he had passed the bar exam. In May 2023, Ferretti agreed to provide the woman with immigration related legal services in exchange for $15,000, according to the investigation. When the victim said she could not pay that amount in a lump sum, Ferretti agreed to an installment payment plan. In August 2023, he asked her to pay an additional $300 for a supposed criminal background check.
Between June 5, 2023, and Dec. 30, 2023, the victim made 16 payments totaling $11,800 through Zelle to Ferretti for promised immigration services. In July 2023, the woman’s brother used Zelle to pay Ferretti to help defray his sister’s debt. Seventeen payments totaling $15,300 were sent using Zelle to two different bank accounts held by Ferretti.
After sending the payments, the woman last communicated with Ferretti around May 20, 2024. He then stopped responding to her multiple efforts to contact him. An investigation determined that no student named Leonardo Ferretti was ever enrolled at Columbia Law School and that Ferretti had never been admitted to the bar. Investigators found that no application for immigration benefits had been filed with federal authorities on behalf of the Corona victim.
Ferretti was arrested by members of the Queens District Attorney’s Detective Bureau on Jan, 21, 2026.
“As alleged, this defendant patiently and meticulously exploited the earnest intentions of a victim in need of legal services,” Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz said. “Upon gaining the victim’s trust, the defendant is accused of taking more than $15,000 from her before disappearing.”
Ferretti pleaded not guilty to the charges before Queens Criminal Court Judge Toko Serita, who released him on his own recognizance with a temporary order of protection and ordered him to return to court on Feb. 25. If convicted, Ferretti faces 2 ⅓ to seven years in prison.
“I thank the victim for coming forward and alerting my office to this fraud,” Katz said. “I urge anyone, regardless of immigration status, who feels that they may have been taken advantage of to contact our Consumer Fraud Helpline at 718-286-6673.”
