FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, April 30, 2025
New York City Employee Pleads Guilty to Stealing $624,000
Defendant Worked as Associate Retirement Benefits Examiner at NYCERS,
Stole Pension Checks from Two Retired Individuals
Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, together with New York City Department of Investigation Commissioner Jocelyn E. Strauber, today announced that a Brooklyn man has pleaded guilty to corrupting the government for stealing $624,000 from two retired New York City employees’ pensions.
District Attorney Gonzalez said, “This defendant shamelessly exploited his position of public trust to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars intended for retired City workers, using his insider access to enrich himself at their expense. His guilty plea is a clear admission of that betrayal, and a reminder that we will not tolerate abuse of government positions for personal gain. I thank DOI and NYCERS for their work on this case.”
Commissioner Strauber said, “The defendant used his employment with the New York City Employees’ Retirement System to steal hundreds of thousands of dollars from City retirees and the City’s pension system. Through his guilty plea today, he has acknowledged that he abused his position of public trust for his own financial gain. I thank the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office for its partnership in this investigation and its commitment to protect the City’s pension funds.”
The District Attorney identified the defendant as Gregory Mathieu, 41, of Canarsie, Brooklyn. He pleaded guilty today to first-degree corrupting the government before Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun in exchange for a promised sentence of one to three years in prison and a judgment order of restitution for $511,115.61 against the defendant. NYCERS was previously able to get back approximately $113,000 from the defendant. Sentencing was set for September 17, 2025.
The District Attorney said that between February 8, 2021 and January 2, 2024, the defendant stole approximately $624,000 from the New York City Employees’ Retirement System (NYCERS), where he worked as an Associate Retirement Benefits Examiner.
The defendant reactivated suspended pension payments of a deceased Department of Sanitation supervisor, stealing retroactive payments of approximately $242,000 and monthly payments between May 2021 and January 2024 of approximately $5,700.
In addition, the defendant stole approximately $199,000 from a 75-year-old retired Associated Railroad Signal Specialist employed by the MTA/NYC Transit Authority.
According to the investigation, the defendant spent the stolen funds on luxury items including $2,500 for a pair of sneakers and a shirt at a Louis Vuitton store, $1,500 for a pair of sneakers at a Chanel store, $19,000 for vacation, and $429,000 in cash withdrawals.
Mathieu was employed by NYCERS for approximately 15 years. He agreed to resign effective May 30, 2025.
The case was investigated by DOI Confidential Investigator Farhana Begum with DOI’s Office of the Inspector General for NYCERS and supervised by Assistant Inspector General Shakina Griffith, Assistant Inspector General Jeffrey Freeman, Deputy Inspector General Aleksandro Tilka, Inspector General Ann Petterson, Deputy Commissioner of Strategic Initiatives Christopher Ryan, and Deputy Commissioner/Chief of Investigations Dominick Zarrella.
Kings County Detective Investigators further assisted in the investigation.
The District Attorney thanked NYCERS’ Fraud Unit for their assistance on the case.
The case is being prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Theresa Robitaille, of the District Attorney’s Organized Crime and Racketeering Bureau, under the supervision of Assistant District Attorney Adam Libove, Deputy Chief of the Public Integrity Bureau, and Assistant District Attorney Laura Neubauer, Bureau Chief, and the overall supervision of Assistant District Attorney Michel Spanakos, Deputy Chief of the District Attorney’s Investigations Division and Assistant District Attorney Patricia McNeill, Chief of the Investigations Division.
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