Otsego County Woman Pleads Guilty to Stealing from School District

ALBANY, NEW YORK – Kristina Hand, age 47, of Morris, New York, pled guilty today to stealing at least $34,000 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.

Hand pled guilty to two counts of federal program theft, for stealing from a school district that received federal funds.

From 2014 through February 2020, Hand was the Treasurer for the Morris Central School District in Otsego County.  In pleading guilty, she admitted that she stole about $24,000 by depositing checks payable to the school district into bank accounts that she controlled.  She also admitted to stealing at least $10,000 more by using the school district’s Amazon account and credit cards to purchase items for her personal use.   

Senior United States District Judge Thomas J. McAvoy is scheduled to sentence Hand on May 11, 2021. 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.  Hand has also agreed to pay $34,000 in restitution to the school district. 

This case was 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.