City employee pleads guilty to stealing checks mailed to Law Department, helping in fraud scheme

NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – A city employee, involved in a scheme, pleaded guilty on Monday to stealing checks mailed to the Law Department, altering them, and depositing the forged versions into other bank accounts, according to prosecutors.

Brandon Santanoo, 27, an employee of the New York City Law Department, worked as a clerk in the mailroom since 2017 at the Law Department’s office in Brooklyn, where he had access to mail that was sent to the department, according to court documents.

From June 2021 through May 2023, Santanoo stole checks that had been mailed to the Law Department, including checks made payable to the Law Department’s Worker’s Compensation Division, which is responsible for administering claims of city employees who are injured on the job, prosecutors said.

He then gave the stolen checks to others, who then deposited or tried to deposit altered versions into other bank accounts.

About 40 checks, totaling approximately $600,000, were stolen and deposited or attempted to be deposited as part of the scheme, according to prosecutors.

“Brandon Santanoo abused his position of trust as a city employee.  As he admitted today in federal court, he stole hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of checks made payable to the Law Department and passed them along to others to fraudulently deposit,”  Damian Williams, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York said. “We will not tolerate any breach of trust or corruption within city agencies.”

Santanoo, of Queens Village, pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 30 years in prison.

He will be sentenced on Sept. 4.