MedicCook
01-03-2007, 07:14 PM
Toys not for tots
Woman charged with defrauding charity of gifts meant for kids
GLENS FALLS -- A Glens Falls woman was arrested Tuesday after police said she falsified applications in order to receive free toys through the Toys for Tots program, police said.
Police believe Anna Brown, 37, of 76 South St,. has used different names and lied on applications for assistance from the seasonal charity to receive thousands of dollars in free toys over the past nine years or so, said Glens Falls Police Detective Sgt. Peter Casertino.
Brown does not have custody of any children, but has had four children that were adopted by another family, police said. Casertino said there were no indications she had given those children any toys over the years she had received them.
Despite the fact she does not have custody of any children, Brown applied for free toys for up to nine children a year, said Tom Golden, Toys for Tots coordinator for Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties. She's applied for assistance each year since 1997.
Police said they do not know what she did with the toys she'd received over the years, and no toys from past years were recovered.
He said he contacted police after Toys for Tots, which is run by the Marine Corps. League, got a call late last year from someone tipping the organization off to her alleged scheme.
Golden said he checked the program's records and found she had applied for free toys in 2006 for nine children, after receiving toys for seven children in 2005.
"When we went back to look at the records, we saw she put down different numbers of kids and different ages each year," Golden said.
Each child in the program receives an average of 11 toys worth $100 or more, so Brown received several hundred dollars' worth of toys each year, he said.
Brown also has been married numerous times, and used different last names and addresses, Casertino said.
Casertino said Brown told police she "must have blacked out" when filling out the application, and didn't know why she put down false information.
Golden, a retired Hudson Falls Police sergeant, said Toys for Tots cross-references applications for assistance with various organizations that serve the needy, such as Community Action and the state Office of Children and Family Services.
"We know we do get taken sometimes, but we try our best to weed them out," he said.
Brown's was the first arrest of someone who was accused of defrauding Toys for Tots. Golden said they've caught some trying to rip off the program in the past, but decided not to have them prosecuted.
The program provided toys for about 700 needy children from 300 families this past Christmas.
Brown was charged with third-degree forgery, a misdemeanor, and released pending prosecution in Glens Falls City Court at a later date.
http://www.poststar.com/articles/2007/01/03/news/doc459c32c353fb1963918911.txt
Woman charged with defrauding charity of gifts meant for kids
GLENS FALLS -- A Glens Falls woman was arrested Tuesday after police said she falsified applications in order to receive free toys through the Toys for Tots program, police said.
Police believe Anna Brown, 37, of 76 South St,. has used different names and lied on applications for assistance from the seasonal charity to receive thousands of dollars in free toys over the past nine years or so, said Glens Falls Police Detective Sgt. Peter Casertino.
Brown does not have custody of any children, but has had four children that were adopted by another family, police said. Casertino said there were no indications she had given those children any toys over the years she had received them.
Despite the fact she does not have custody of any children, Brown applied for free toys for up to nine children a year, said Tom Golden, Toys for Tots coordinator for Warren, Washington and northern Saratoga counties. She's applied for assistance each year since 1997.
Police said they do not know what she did with the toys she'd received over the years, and no toys from past years were recovered.
He said he contacted police after Toys for Tots, which is run by the Marine Corps. League, got a call late last year from someone tipping the organization off to her alleged scheme.
Golden said he checked the program's records and found she had applied for free toys in 2006 for nine children, after receiving toys for seven children in 2005.
"When we went back to look at the records, we saw she put down different numbers of kids and different ages each year," Golden said.
Each child in the program receives an average of 11 toys worth $100 or more, so Brown received several hundred dollars' worth of toys each year, he said.
Brown also has been married numerous times, and used different last names and addresses, Casertino said.
Casertino said Brown told police she "must have blacked out" when filling out the application, and didn't know why she put down false information.
Golden, a retired Hudson Falls Police sergeant, said Toys for Tots cross-references applications for assistance with various organizations that serve the needy, such as Community Action and the state Office of Children and Family Services.
"We know we do get taken sometimes, but we try our best to weed them out," he said.
Brown's was the first arrest of someone who was accused of defrauding Toys for Tots. Golden said they've caught some trying to rip off the program in the past, but decided not to have them prosecuted.
The program provided toys for about 700 needy children from 300 families this past Christmas.
Brown was charged with third-degree forgery, a misdemeanor, and released pending prosecution in Glens Falls City Court at a later date.
http://www.poststar.com/articles/2007/01/03/news/doc459c32c353fb1963918911.txt