Nab Howard Beach Man For Workers' Comp Fraud Scam

A Howard Beach man was among four individuals charged last week for allegedly concocting schemes to fraudulently swipe more than $160,000 in workers' compensation payments, it was announced.

Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown identified the suspect as 43-year-old Gaspare Galante of 156th Avenue, who was booked on third-degree grand larceny and insurance fraud charges as well as counts of first-degree falsifying business records, offering a false instrument for filing and violating the New York State workers' compensation law. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

Four other men—two from Queens and two from Long Island— were also charged with workers' compensation fraud, as announced last Friday, May 22, by Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown and New York State Insurance Fund Ex- ecutive Director James J. Wrynn. They are identified as follows:

• Jun Hang Wang, 41, of Sixth Avenue in College Point, charged with second-degree grand larceny, seconddegree insurance fraud, first-degree falsifying business records and violating section 114(1) of the Workers' Compensation law. He faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.

• Daniel Weintraub, 62, of Edward Street in Roslyn, charged with third-degree grand larceny, first-degree falsifying business records, second degree criminal possession of a forged instrument and violating section 114(1) of the Workers' Compensation law. He faces up to seven years in prison if convicted.

• Elvio Rodriguez, 40, of Eighth Avenue in College Point, charged with third-degree grand larceny, firstdegree falsifying business records, third-degree insurance fraud and violating sections 114(1) and 96(1) of the Workers' Compensation law. He could face up to seven years in prison if convicted.

• Vasilis Charalamous, 49, of Youkum Avenue in Farmingdale, charged with second-degree grand larceny, second-degree insurance fraud, first-degree offering a false instrument for filing, first-degree falsifying business records and violating section 96(1) of the Workers' Compensation law. If convicted, the defendant faces up to 15 years in prison.

"These are serious crimes that undermine the system for workers who are truly deserving of workers' compensation and for contractors who pay their fair share," said District Attorney Brown in a statement. "My office will continue to aggressively prosecute individuals who abuse the system for their own benefits."

"Workers' compensation fraud is a felony that not only escalates the cost of insurance, it directly impacts the consuming public and impedes recovery of the state's economy," added Wrynn. "New York State is tough on insurance fraud because insurance fraud is a serious crime that robs everyone—hardworking men and women, families and legitimate businesses—trying to make an honest living.

Regarding Galante, prosecutors charged the Howard Beach resident for allegedly receiving benefits for an injury suffered while working as an exterminator for Rudy's Exterminating Company, Inc., in July 2003. He allegedly received benefits totaling more than $28,000 between 2005 and 2009 to which he was not entitled because he failed to notify the NYSIF that he was allegedly working for USA Exterminators, located in Brooklyn, while collecting benefits.

As for Wang, law enforcement sources said the suspect—identified as the owner of Xin Jian Construction Corporation—allegedly under-reported his earnings to the NYSIF and paid premiums for workers' compensation based on that. It is alleged that Wang's company earned substantially more and now owes the fund approximately $54,000 in unpaid premiums.

In Weintraub's case, prosecutors said while owner of The Plumbing Company in Little Neck, he allegedly worked on a number of occasions as a subcontractor after showing contractors a forged insurance policy indicating he carried workers' compensation insurance while he allegedly did not.

All of the defendants were arraigned last Wednesday, May 20 and Thursday, May 21 in Queens Criminal Court in Kew Gardens.

The arrests were made by NYPD Detectives Ferdinand Caravousanos and Albert Ramos of the District Attorney's NYPD Squad under the direct supervision of Sgt. Francis Teran and the overall supervision of Capt. John M. Zanfardino. The investigations were conducted by State Insurance Department Frauds Investigators Dennis Carmody, George Cappaccio, Frank Hunt, NYSIF Investigators Dominick Raspante and Ray Mayberry, and AIG Senior Investigator Kristin Romani.

Assistant District Attorney Rosemary Buccheri, of the District Attorney's Economic Crimes Bureau, is prosecuting the case under the supervision of Gregory C. Pavlides, Bureau Chief, and Christina Hanophy, Deputy Bureau Chief, and the overall supervision of Executive Assistant District Attorney for Investigations Peter A. Crusco and Deputy Executive Assistant District Attorney Linda M. Cantoni.

It was noted that a criminal complaint is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.