The New York State Department of Labor (DOL) identified more than 60 persons employed by the USPS as mail carriers, mail processing clerks or casual laborers who collected more than $425,000 in Unemployment Insurance benefits while working for the Postal Service. More than 20 of these cases were referred to the United States Attorney’s Office Northern District for criminal investigation and prosecution. Today’s announcement is the first of what are expected to be additional arrests resulting from this investigation.
Press Release from the US Attorney’s Office:
Albany, New York–RICHARD S. HARTUNIAN, United States Attorney, Northern District of New York, announces that seven United States Postal Service employees have plead guilty to making false statements to obtain unemployment benefits to which they were not entitled. These guilty pleas are part of an ongoing national sweep targeting fraud by Postal workers in claiming unemployment benefits. In each case, the defendants lied about their eligibility for benefits by either falsely claiming to be unemployed or under-reporting their income, and fraudulently obtaining benefits ranging from $5,396 to $26,218.
All seven Postal employees entered guilty pleas to one count informations charging them with making false statements to obtain unemployment benefits they were not entitled to in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Section 1919. At the guilty plea and sentencing each defendant was ordered to pay restitution in full for the fraud they committed. The defendants and the fraud amount in each case are as follows:
| Name | Location | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Erin Gagnon, 37 | Plattsburgh, NY | $26,218 |
| Clarence Reed, 46 | Schenectady, NY | $11,255 |
| Nicole Martin, 41 | Brooklyn, NY | $5,396 |
| Donnel Richardson, 30 | Brooklyn, NY | $9,007 |
| Kelly Williams, 36 | Nyack, NY | $16,605 |
| Angela Blazejewski, 35 | Rocky Point, NY | $11,542 |
| John Congiusti, 31 | Bronx, NY | $8,896 |
“We are always vigilant in enforcing the law, even when the case, sadly, involves public servants. The actions of these defendants undermine America’s trust in others serving the public and impede the system in benefitting those truly in need,” said United States Attorney Richard S.Hartunian. “Unemployment benefits are meant to provide crucial financial assistance to workers who become unemployed through no fault of their own. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to stop fraudulent schemes such as these which ultimately hurt the American taxpayers.”
“Today’s guilty pleas highlight the importance of this multi-agency investigation to identify fraud in benefit programs such as the U.S. Department of Labor’s Unemployment Insurance Program. We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to investigate those who seek to obtain benefits to which they are not entitled,” stated Robert Panella, Special Agent-in-Charge of the New York Regional Office of the U.S. Department of Labor Office of
Inspector General, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations.
“These pleas come as a result of the excellent investigative collaboration between the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, the New York State Department of Labor-Office of Special Investigations and the Department of Labor Office of Inspector in General”, said Rafael A. Medina, Special Agent in Charge of the USPSOIG’s Northeast Area Field Office.
“The Postal Service prides itself in its dedicated and professional employees, but the small percentage who stray away from those professional standards should know that law enforcement,at all levels, will always work closely to combat fraud against any federal or state program.”
“Unemployment Insurance fraud – especially when it’s committed by government employees who should be serving taxpayers, not stealing from them – is something we at the Department of Labor have a zero tolerance policy on,” said State Labor Commissioner Peter M.Rivera. “Our Major Case Unit at the Labor Department continues to uncover these acts of deception on a daily basis and I am proud of the work we have done together with the U. S. Attorney for the Northern District of New York to bring these individuals to justice.”
This prosecution resulted from a joint investigation conducted by the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General, New York State Department of Labor, Office of Special Investigations, and US Department of Labor OIG, Office of Labor Racketeering and Fraud Investigations.
This case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney, Geoffrey J. L. Brown.
It’s called delay no pay. make sure you file CA-1 and CA-2. You’ll need to write a letter stating what you did from start to finish each day. If this fails to get your claim accepted get a lawyer.
The unions will save them.
Question were these employees Postal workers with reduced hours as some one stated above? the reason i’m asking is because i’m actually in the same boat. 25 year carrier who has been denied workers comp, was injured on the job with a torn miniscus, and discovered that I have tri-compartmental arthritis. I’m being told by the Post office, Drs. as well as the D.O.L that my condition was not impacted by my job at all, huh again I’m a letter carrier,25 years every one has to know that my legs are my job. Again I ask how can anyone be so definatively sure that after all those miles,twisting, turning, banging knees, against railings, walking on concrete steps, concrete pavements, in rain, snow, sleet, hail, hottest weather you name it, that this has not aggreviated or aggitated my arthiritis. Most studies say that in order to have it as bad as i do you should be around 70 years old, well i’m only 55 thats at least 15 years off. So now that they the P.O. only wants to give me two hours a day, am I entitled to unemployment?
At some point in our lives we all will make mistakes. It appears it will cost each of them more than what they received. Sometimes it’s just not worth it.
Sorry ‘Mikey Murray’, craft postal workers are the most productive in the world/lowest postage rates in the world. You must be one of the bully management (so-called) hacks that do needlessly add to overall costs.
Not satisfied with stealing by clocking in and doing little to nothing as is the Postal norm…
50:1 odds that these cases get thrown out. With all the plant/station closings these postal workers probably had reduced weekly hours and applied for Unemployment to make the difference, which is legal. It’s not like New York fraud investigators are wasting their time/resources going after Wall Street for financial crimes.
Throw the crooks in jail
allways vigilant my axe, no doubt someone ratted them out or they would have never been caught.
US Attorney Hartunian says, “We are always vigilant in enforcing the law, even when the case, sadly, involves public servants.” What a liar, 11 million illegal immigrants are in the United States. Who is enforcing the law and getting them deported?? Yeah, they will make sure the citizens who commit crimes are brought to justice, but the illegal immigrants, they actually released them from custody due to not having money. I guess they got some money now!!