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A former New York City correction officer was arrested Thursday on charges of defrauding the city by submitting falsified medical documentation to collect thousands of dollars in sick pay, according to the Department of Investigation.
Melonie Sosa, 42, of West Babylon, was charged with multiple counts of grand larceny after investigators concluded she submitted fraudulent medical notes while employed by the Department of Correction. Prosecutors allege the scheme resulted in the improper payment of approximately $9,332 in sick leave.
The arrest was announced by Acting DOI Commissioner Christopher Ryan, whose office investigated the case in coordination with the Queens District Attorney’s Office, which is prosecuting the charges. The investigation was initiated after DOC’s Health Management Division flagged irregularities and referred the matter to DOI.
Sosa was charged with one count of grand larceny in the third degree, a class D felony; one count of grand larceny in the fourth degree, a class E felony; and 26 counts of offering a false instrument for filing in the second degree, a class A misdemeanor. She was arraigned Thursday and her next court date is scheduled for March 2, 2026.
The Correction Officers’ Benevolent Association did not respond to a request for comment.
Sosa began working for DOC in 2007 and was earning an annual salary of approximately $98,155 at the time of her retirement in October 2023.
According to the criminal complaint, between April 2021 and April 2022, Sosa submitted 26 medical notes to DOC claiming she had been treated at various medical facilities, including physical therapy clinics, a dental office and a medical practice. Investigators determined the documents had not been generated by those providers and were not legitimate.
As a result of the allegedly false submissions, prosecutors say Sosa received sick leave payments to which she was not entitled. The alleged misconduct occurred during a period when the Department of Correction was facing staffing shortages.
“This defendant is charged with defrauding the City and its taxpayers of thousands of dollars in sick time by submitting falsified medical documentation,” Ryan said in a statement, adding that the seriousness of the allegations was heightened by DOC’s staffing crisis at the time.
Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz emphasized the obligation of public employees to act with integrity, saying those who fail to do so “will be held responsible.”
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