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Rensselaer County resident Todd Ward, age 45, of Troy, pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the New York State Department of Labor (NYSDOL) in Albany federal court in late June 2024.
Prosecutors said Ward confessed to providing co-conspirator Carl DiVeglia with the personal identifying information of another individual, which DiVeglia then used to file a false claim on the NYSDOL website.
He also admitted that the agency paid out $152,086 in unemployment insurance benefits as a result of the fraudulent applications.
DiVeglia, a former NYSDOL employee, pleaded guilty to fraudulently obtaining $1.6 million in unemployment insurance benefits in April 2022. He also copped to mail fraud and identity theft charges.
Prosecutors said DiVeglia and his colleague Wendell Giles, of Albany, submitted fake unemployment insurance applications using the names of other people, and then abused their access to NYSDOL computer systems to release benefits payments.
In a text message sent to Giles, DiVeglia suggested a vanity license plate for Giles’ new vehicle that read, “TY PUA,” which prosecutors said meant, “thank you pandemic unemployment assistance.”
Giles responded with a simple, “LOL.”
As part of his plea agreement, Ward agreed to pay $152,086 in restitution to the state. He faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $250,000 when he’s sentenced in November 2024.
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