AUBURN, NY – Four Cayuga County women were arrested for tax and welfare fraud after a multi-agency investigation, per a report by the Syracuse Post-Standard.
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The arrests followed a cooperative investigation between multiple county and state agencies. They are alleged to have either committed fraud to attain public assistance they weren't entitled to, or of filing false tax returns to reduce or eliminate their tax liability.
Maria A. Skiff (provided photo)
The Crimes Against Revenue unit of Cayuga County will be seeking to recover the funds from the women, seeking a combined total of around $30,000 between the group.
According to Cayuga District Attorney Jon Budelmann, the women and their associated charges are as follows:
April K. Allen, of Weedsport, is allegedly the largest offender. Allen is accused of presenting false information to the Cayuga Department of Social Services, allowing her access to $15,000 in public assistance that she was not entitled to. She is charged with grand larceny in the third degree, and welfare fraud in the third degree, misuse of food stamps and offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree, all felonies.
Maria A. Skiff, of Auburn, is accused of the same set of felonies as Allen, though her offenses were worth $3,000.
Susan L. King, of Weedsport, was charged with four felonies: two counts each of criminal tax fraud in the fourth degree and offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree. King allegedly filed false tax returns in 2014 and 2015, allowing her to dodge $10,400 worth of income tax payments.
Susan L. King (provided photo)
Jennifer A. Rusaw, of Weedsport, was charged with one felony - offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree - along with a set of three misdemeanors, including petit larceny, misuse of food stamps and welfare fraud in the fifth degree. It was not specified how much these crimes cost the government.
These are not the first offenses for three of these women, according to the Auburn Pub. Allen was previously charged for petit larceny, King for grand larceny, and Rusaw with second-degree identity theft.
Cayuga County has had an ongoing battle with such cases. The Crime Against Revenue group has reportedly saved taxpayers in the county nearly $1,000,000 worth of public assistance benefits in just it's first year, according to the Auburn Pub.
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