Florida man accused of stealing pension paid to dead father of Long Beach

A Florida man was arrested and charged with grand larceny and identity theft for allegedly spending pension payments deposited to his dead father’s bank account, officials said.

Richard Gaines Jr., 51, of Daytona Beach, Florida, pleaded not guilty to charges related to spending nearly $80,000 in pension payments the New York State and Local Retirement System continued to deposit into the bank account of his father, a Long Beach resident, after he died in 2019, Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly and New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli said Friday.

Gaines’ father died on Nov. 11, 2019, and he reported his death to the NYSLRS in June 2022, at which point excess pension payments ceased, according to a news release. By that time, Gaines' father posthumously received $79,943 in retirement system funds deposited to his bank account, on which he was the sole owner, officials said.

Between the day his father died and May 31, 2022, Gaines allegedly used his father’s debit card and PIN number to conduct more than 130 ATM withdrawals totaling $45,980, according to a news release. With the same debit card, he also allegedly made 28 purchases totaling $2,484 in Nassau County, including transactions at a BJ’s Wholesale store, a Stop & Shop and a Walmart, officials said.

In addition to New York, Gaines allegedly made cash withdrawals from ATMs in his home state of Florida, as well as both New Jersey and Georgia, authorities said.

"Mr. Gaines allegedly exploited his father’s death to pocket nearly $80,000 he was not entitled to," DiNapoli said in a statement.

On Friday, Gaines surrendered to authorities and pleaded not guilty before Judge Geoffrey Prime at Nassau County District Court in Hempstead on charges of second-degree grand larceny and first-degree identity theft, officials said. He was represented by the Legal Aid Society of Nassau County and released on his own recognizance. He is due back in court on Wednesday.

If convicted, officials said Gaines faces up to 15 years in prison.

"The state’s retirement system is built to support public employees who earned their pensions over years of hard work," Donnelly said in a statement. "Financial abuses like the alleged theft committed by this defendant undermine this essential system and places an unnecessary burden on resources that provide security for hundreds of thousands of retirees and their beneficiaries."