Otsego County Woman Charged with Federal Program Theft for Stealing from School District

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Kristina Hand, age 47, of Morris, New York, was arrested today and charged with stealing thousands of dollars from her former employer, the Morris Central School District.

The announcement was made by Acting United States Attorney Antoinette T. Bacon; New York State Comptroller Thomas P. DiNapoli; Thomas F. Relford, Special Agent in Charge of the Albany Field Office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI); and New York State Police Superintendent Keith M. Corlett.

A criminal complaint alleges that Hand, as the Treasurer for the Morris Central School District in Otsego County, diverted and stole at least $22,315.33 in checks made payable to the school district in 2018 and 2019 – years in which the district annually received more than $10,000 in federal funding. The school district terminated Hand’s employment in February 2020, upon discovering the theft. The charges in the complaint are merely accusations. The defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.

Hand appeared today before United States Magistrate Judge Daniel J. Stewart, and was released pending further proceedings.  If convicted, she faces up to 10 years in prison, a maximum $250,000 fine, and up to 3 years of post-imprisonment supervised release.  A defendant’s sentence is imposed by a judge based on the particular statute the defendant is charged with violating, the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other factors.

This case is being investigated by the FBI, New York State Police, and the Office of the New York State Comptroller, and is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Barnett.