Suffolk County District Attorney Raymond A. Tierney and New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli today announced the arrest of former Town of Huntington employee Moses K. Johnson, 63, of Huntington, for allegedly stealing his mother’s public pension payments following her death in April 2021.
“The New York State Retirement Fund is funded by the hard work of hundreds of thousands of public sector employees, and provides retirement security for over one million members,” said District Attorney Tierney. “My Office will investigate and prosecute anyone who is alleged to have stolen from this vital resource.”
“Mr. Johnson allegedly took advantage of his mother’s death to pocket tens of thousands of dollars he was not entitled to,” said New York State Comptroller DiNapoli. “Thanks to my investigators and Suffolk County District Attorney Tierney, he is being held accountable for his crime. My office will continue to work with law enforcement agencies across the state and country to protect the New York State pension system from fraud.”
The arrest is the result of a joint investigation by the Suffolk County District Attorney and the Office of the New York State Comptroller. According to the investigation, Johnson’s mother died on April 16, 2021.
Johnson allegedly failed to notify the bank or the New York State and Local Retirement System of his mother’s death. Instead, Johnson continued to collect and spend her pension payments.
Between April 30, 2021, and June 30, 2022, Johnson allegedly collected a total of 15 unauthorized payments totaling $56,411.37. The stolen funds were traced from Johnson’s mother’s bank account into his bank account, which he allegedly then spent.
Johnson previously worked for the Town of Huntington for over 30 years, and worked in the recycling center until his retirement in 2017. As a member of the state retirement system, Johnson should have been aware of the pension process, and known his mother’s payments should have been stopped with her death.
On October 11, 2023, Johnson was arrested by investigators of the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office, and arraigned before Suffolk County District Court Judge, the Honorable Anna Acqafredda, for one count of Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a Class C felony. Judge Acqafredda released Johnson on his own recognizance during the pendency of the case. Johnson is due back in court on October 25, 2023.
This case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Amanda Scheier of the Public Corruption Bureau, with investigative assistance from Assistant Special Investigator Chris Castle of the District Attorney’s Public Corruption Squad.
Criminal complaints and indictments are merely accusatory instruments. Defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty. No one is above the law.
