QUINCY MAN CHARGED WITH THEFT OF GOVERNMENT MONEY
BOSTON, Mass. - An Indictment charging a Quincy man with stealing more than $116,000 from the government was returned yesterday in federal court.
GERALD M. SHARKEY, 73, of Quincy was charged in an Indictment with two counts of theft of government money. The Indictment alleges that SHARKEY stole money from the Office of Personnel Management by receiving monthly annuity payments intended for his mother for approximately 11 years after her death in 1994. SHARKEY allegedly failed to notify the Office of Personnel Management of his mother’s death and falsified verification forms to mislead the government into believing that SHARKEY’s mother, the only legal recipient of the annuity payments, was still alive. It is further alleged that, before the fraud was uncovered, SHARKEY stole more than $116,000.
If convicted on these charges, SHARKEY faces up to 10 years imprisonment, to be followed by three years of supervised release and a $250,000 fine.
United States Attorney Carmen M. Ortiz, Drew Grimm, Special Agent in Charge of Eastern Operations, Office of Personnel Management, Office of Inspector General and Steven D. Ricciardi, Special Agent in Charge of the U.S. Secret Service made the announcement today. The case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul G. Levenson of Ortiz’s Economic Crimes Unit.
The details contained in the Indictment are allegations. The defendant is presumed to be innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
