New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli and Nassau County District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly announced the son of a state pensioner from Long Island was sentenced to five years’ probation and ordered to pay full restitution after being convicted of identity theft in connection with his theft of $79,943 in pension payments sent to his deceased father. The defendant, Richard Gaines Jr., 55, of Daytona Beach, Florida, pleaded guilty to identity theft in the first degree in May.
“Richard Gaines’ conviction should serve as a clear warning to anyone who considers stealing from the New York state retirement system that they will be caught and prosecuted no matter where they live,” DiNapoli said. “My thanks to District Attorney Donnelly for her partnership in helping to protect our pension system from fraud.”
“Richard Gaines shamelessly stole tens of thousands of dollars from the New York State pension system by taking money that was never his,”Donnelly said. “Our retirement system is built to protect hardworking employees who earned their pensions over years of service, not thieves who have the audacity to pilfer from a deceased parent. This sentence serves as a reminder that anyone who tries to abuse it will face consequences.”
The defendant’s father worked for the Nassau County Bridge Authority for 29 years before retiring in 1996. He received state pension payments monthly via direct deposit into his checking account. He died on Nov. 9, 2019, and all pension payments were to end, but DiNapoli’s investigators found Gaines Jr. never informed the system of his father’s death until three years later and instead used his father’s debit card to steal $79,0845.59 in benefits deposited into the account from 2019 to 2022. Gaines Jr. was not an account holder on his father’s checking account.
Gaines Jr. used about $2,484 of the money he stole to make personal purchases at Nassau County businesses. He also made ATM withdrawals in New Jersey, Georgia and Florida.
Gaines Jr. was sentenced before Judge Colin O’Donnell in Nassau County Court.