Woman gets 7 years for stealing from former Navy SEAL and his widowed mother

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa — An Iowa woman has been given seven years in prison for stealing more than $192,000 from her now-dead fiance and his elderly mother.

Robin Ann Bertelli, of Cedar Rapids, was sentenced Tuesday in U.S. District Court in Cedar Rapids. She pleaded guilty to fraud and identity theft.

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Prosecutors say the 61-year-old Bertelli stole checks from July 2013 through September 2016 that belonged to former Navy SEAL Ken Martin Jr. and Martin's mother and wrote them payable to herself, forging their signatures.

Prosecutors say Bertelli started a relationship with Martin around 2013 and moved in with him and his mother. Martin died in February 2016 while on vacation with Bertelli in Puerto Rico from what Bertelli said was an accidental drowning after hitting his head on a rock.

“The widow was unable to walk to her mailbox to get her mail. Bertelli stole mail from the widow, including mail from her financial institution, Collins Community Credit Union,” according to a Department of Justice statement issued on May 17, the day Bertelli pleaded guilty.

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