Hudson Valley Welfare Task Forces Arrest 6

Six Hudson Valley residents were arrested following investigations by welfare task forces in multiple counties.

On Thursday, the Sullivan County Welfare Fraud Task Force announced the following arrests:

Michael N. Taurino, 42, of Fallsburg was arrested for offering a false instrument for filing, a felony, and theft of service, a misdemeanor. Taurino allegedly stole $206.68 in public-funded transportation by using Medicaid medical transportation for non-medical purposes.

Chaz M. Fitch, 41, of Yonkers was arrested on an outstanding Sullivan County Family Court Warrant for failing to pay in excess of $5,528 in owed child support, police say. Fitch was remanded to Sullivan County Jail to serve six months.

Jessica T. Ellis, 31, of Ferndale was charged with offering a false instrument for filing, a felony, and theft of service, a misdemeanor. It is alleged Ellis stole $228.77 in public-funded transportation by using Medicaid medical transportation for non-medical purposes.

Gail Moore, 43, of Livingston Manor was arrested for grand larceny, offering a false instrument for filing, felonies, and theft of service, a misdemeanor. A joint investigation between Sullivan County Probation and the Welfare Fraud Task Force resulted in the allegation that Moore stole $3,825.46 in public-funded transportation by using Medicaid medical transportation to visit her son at the Sullivan County Jail and attend her probation appointments at Sullivan County Probation.

A 33-year-old woman from Liberty was charged with misuse of food stamps, a misdemeanor for allegedly using an EBT card at Walmart that did not belong to her.

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In Dutchess County, 32-year-old Ahmad A. Khatib of Hopewell Junction was arrested for welfare fraud, a felony. An investigation by the Dutchess County Sheriff’s Office Detective Division, in conjunction with the Investigations Division of the Dutchess County Department of Community and Family Services, revealed that Khatib illegally obtained over $20,000 in Medicaid benefits between January 2014 and January 2017 by allegedly concealing the fact that he was receiving other unreported income, police say.