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A Schenectady County jury has found Frederick Hollingshed, 58, guilty of grand larceny, identity theft, and criminal possession of stolen property in a COVID-19 unemployment fraud case. The verdict, announced by Schenectady County District Attorney Robert M. Carney, follows a trial overseen by Acting Schenectady County Court Judge Mark Caruso.
Hollingshed fraudulently obtained $16,196 in unemployment benefits by assuming another person's identity during the COVID-19 pandemic, starting in November 2020. He also received benefits under his own name. An investigator from the New York State Department of Labor testified that the department disbursed three years' worth of benefits in just nine months during the pandemic.
According to CBS6 Albany, the fraud was uncovered when Hollingshed logged into both his personal and the victim's unemployment claims using the same IP addresses. Investigators traced one IP address to Hollingshed's home, and he certified both claims from the same phone number within minutes. KeyBank records, including recorded phone calls, were presented to the jury, with Hollingshed's federal probation officer identifying his voice on both claims.
Hollingshed is scheduled to be sentenced on July 24, 2025.