A staffer for Comptroller John Liu was arrested in an alleged kickback scheme, reportedly pocketing over $50,000.
Veda Jamoona and two other co-conspirators were arrested on Monday, February 25 for allegedly stealing funds from a senior citizen’s lunch program, run by the nonprofit United Hindu Cultural Council (UHCC).
“By stealing from the senior center lunch program, the defendants put personal greed ahead of the basic needs of New York seniors,” said Attorney General Eric Schneiderman.
According to the indictment, Jamoona, 28, and her mother, Chan Jamoona, 66, both former UHCC executive directors, perpetrated a long-running scheme in which the owner of Sonny’s Roti Shop in Ozone Park, Steven Rajkumar, submitted falsely inflated invoices for lunches served to the seniors. The three then shared the profits.
“These defendants systematically chiseled the city’s taxpayers and shortchanged the seniors they were supposed to serve,” said Department of Investigation Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn.
The trio is charged with various counts, including a felony indictment for the Jamoona and her mother. If convicted, they all could receive 5 to 15 years in prison.
Jamoona started working for the comptroller in January of last year as a public affairs associate. After her arrest, she was immediately suspended without pay, according to a spokesperson for Liu.
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