The Russell Smith Courthouse, the Missoula Division of the U.S. District Court of Montana. (Photo by Blair Miller)
A Kalispell woman accused in a scheme to activate and use stolen credit or debit cards with personal information obtained from patient records at Kalispell Regional Medical Center admitted to fraud charges on Dec. 20, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
Alecia Mae Leonetti, 50, of Kalispell, pleaded guilty on Friday to wire fraud and aggravated identity theft, according to a news release from the Montana U.S. Attorney’s Office.
U.S. Magistrate Kathleen L. DeSoto presided.
Leonetti faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, a $250,000 fine and three years of supervised release on the wire fraud charge and a mandatory minimum of two years in prison, consecutive to any other sentence, a $250,000 fine and one year of supervised release on the aggravated identity theft charge.
In court documents, the government alleged that from September 2020 to December 2020, Leonetti’s co-defendant, Krista Hall, was employed at Kalispell Regional Medical Center, now Logan Health, where she had access to the hospital’s patient records.
Leonetti would obtain stolen credit or debit cards and then contact Hall for Hall to look up the cardholder’s personal identifying information. Leonetti used the personal identifying information to activate the stolen card and then use the card to make purchases or withdraw cash.
In one instance, Leonetti obtained a Glacier Bank credit card belonging to John Doe, obtained Doe’s personal identifying information from Hall and activated the card. Leonetti admitted to law enforcement she accumulated more than $2,400 in charges at several Kalispell businesses over two days in September 2020.
Hall has pleaded not guilty to charges in the case and is pending trial.
Sentencing for Leonetti was set for April 24, 2025, before U.S. District Judge Dana L. Christensen. Leonetti was released pending further proceedings.
The U.S. Attorney’s Office is prosecuting the case. The FBI and Flathead County Sheriff’s Office conducted the investigation.