Orange County News
For Immediate Release Contact: Ryan Greenbaum
Wednesday, May 3, 2023 845.615.3657, 845.415.0868c
Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler: Fraud Arrest by Multi-Agency White Collar Crime Task Force
Defendant Indicted and Charged with Grand Larceny in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree
Orange County District Attorney David M. Hoovler announced that Reginald Williams, 28, of Newburgh, was indicted by the Orange County Grand Jury after having been arrested on April 19, 2023 and charged with Grand Larceny in the Second Degree and Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree. Williams was arraigned in the Town of Warwick Justice Court on April 19 and remanded to the Orange County Jail without bail. He is expected to be arraigned on the indictment in Orange County Court at a later date.
A nearly year-long investigation conducted by the Orange County White Collar Crime Task Force, together with the New York State Department of Financial Services, the Town of Newburgh Police Department and the Town of Woodbury Police Department revealed that the defendant, acting individually and in concert with others, allegedly opened a fake business account in order to deposit a $65,000 check belonging to a local Orange County company, without the company’s permission.
The multi-agency Task Force, which includes investigators from the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office and several other local police agencies including the Town of Newburgh Police Department, the Village of Warwick Police Department, and Town of Woodbury Police Department, was created in March 2023 to focus on enhancing the investigation and prosecution of public corruption and financial crimes. The Task Force’s mandate includes the investigation of residential contractor fraud; crimes involving public integrity, public corruption, and ethics violations; embezzlement and other complex theft cases, crimes against revenue; wage theft and labor law violations.
“My Office, together with the Task Force, will do everything in our power to fight fraud that victimizes the citizens of our county,” said District Attorney David M. Hoovler. “Cases such as these can be and often are complicated and require the time and resources now available with the cooperative efforts of the agencies involved. I hope this arrest, and other prosecutions like it, stands as a warning to those looking to use fraud in order to enrich themselves: law enforcement is watching and we will seek to hold you accountable.”
The case is being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorney Alexis Gregory and Chief Trial Assistant District Attorney Richard Moran.
A criminal charge is merely an allegation by the police that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.