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Ex-LI Town Employee Pockets Dead Mom’s Pension Payments Totaling Over $56K, DA Says
A former town employee on Long Island is accused of stealing his dead mother’s public pension payments totaling tens of thousands of dollars.
Moses Johnson, age 63, of Huntington, was arrested Wednesday, Oct. 11, on suspicion of grand larceny.
Johnson, a former employee at the Town of Huntington, allegedly pocketed 15 unauthorized payments totaling over $56,000 between April 2021 and June 2022, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.
Investigators said the stolen funds were transferred to his bank account from an account belonging to his mother, who died in April 2021. …
Two-Time Long Island Car Thief Nabbed, Police Announce
A man who managed to steal three cars on two separate occasions from a Long Island car dealership has been taken into custody nearly a year after the crimes, police announced.
On Monday, Oct. 2, Andrew Ponton, age 21 of Queens, was arrested for his alleged role in the theft of multiple cars from a Freeport car dealership, according to Nassau County Police.
Ponton’s first alleged theft occurred in October 2022.
The then-20-year-old is accused of breaking into the Carmart Auto Group, located at 497 Main Street, and stealing a white 2017 Ford Explorer from the lot.
Then, in November 2022…
$200K Fraud: 2 Long Island Residents Claimed Retirement, Disability, DA Says
Together, two Long Island residents allegedly defrauded the Social Security Administration out of hundreds of thousands of dollars in benefits by not disclosing income or the death of a relative, authorities said.
On Monday, Oct. 2, Uniondale resident Markus Effinger and Valley Stream resident Gloria Sevilla were arraigned in two separate cases regarding alleged Social Security fraud, the Nassau County District Attorney announced.
Effinger, age 55, first began collecting disability benefits for his reported vision issues (including “retinal detachment”) in May 2012.
In 2014, 2015, and 20…
$108K Scam: Long Island Bank Employee Ran Check Scheme, Police Say
A Long Island woman was arrested after she used her position as a bank employee to pull off a hundred-thousand-dollar scam.
Cricel A. Santamaria, age 24, was arrested on Tuesday, Oct. 3 for the crime she allegedly committed while working at a Jericho bank, according to Nassau County Police.
Santamaria, a resident of Hauppauge, was working at Webster Bank, located at 1 Jericho Plaza, on February 4, 2022, when authorities allege she fraudulently accessed check images.
She then sold them on the messaging app Telegram.
In total, the bank lost approximately $108,000 due to Santamaria’s sche…
Woman Scammed $750K Out Of Long Island Victim, Sentenced
A Long Island woman who stole nearly three-quarters of a million dollars from an elderly woman will now spend years behind bars, authorities announced.
On Friday, Sept. 15, Elizabeth Reilly, a 50-year-old New Hyde Park woman, was sentenced to three to six years in prison for grand larceny, according to the Nassau County District Attorney.
Original story: $750K Stolen: New Hyde Park Thief Used Money On Plane Tickets, Beauty, DA Says
At the time of the crimes, Reilly was employed by a Floral Park attorney who had a verbal agreement with a 91-year-old woman to handle her finances whil…
$42K Wage Theft Scheme: Long Island Company Charged For Stealing From Employees, DA Says
A Long Island man, along with his company, has been charged with multiple counts in relation to a kickback scheme, authorities announced.
On Tuesday, Sept. 12, the Nassau County District Attorney announced that 58-year-old Glen Head resident Angelo Stanco, along with his Glen Cove company American Paving & Masonry Corp., were arraigned on charges including grand larceny for their alleged wage theft scheme.
According to the charges, in July 2018, Stanco and his company acknowledged to the NY Department of Labor that they had underpaid employees who worked on projects in Sands Point and…
$350K Scam: Employee Steals Thousands From Long Island Hospitality Company, Police Say
A woman working for a Long Island hospitality company secretly transferred over $350,000 to herself during the span of two years, police said.
On Wednesday, Sept. 6, Nassau County Police announced the arrest of 43-year-old Nicole Simeona on a grand larceny charge.
Simeona, a Freeport resident, is accused of stealing money using credit cards from her employer, Blue Sky Hospitality Solutions, which is located in Uniondale.
From February 2021 to February 2023, while working at the hotel management company’s accounts payable department, Simeona allegedly made nearly 77 fraudulent transactio…
Phony Real Estate Agent Scams Would-Be Renters Out Of Thousands On Long Island, Police Say
Several would-be renters on Long Island found themselves out thousands of dollars after getting duped by a con artist posing as a real estate agent, police said.
Christian Anderson, age 24, of Shirley, was arrested Thursday, Sept. 7, on multiple charges stemming from the alleged scam, according to Suffolk County Police.
Investigators said Anderson sought out rental properties online and then relisted them on a social media website, claiming that he was the real estate agent.
Between January and March 2023, Anderson arranged to meet with victims in bank parking lots for properties in the Ma…