County DA: Pair Defrauded Yonkers School System of $280,000

A school bus company owner and the Yonkers school transportation supervisor allegedly schemed to defraud the city of $280,000 worth of bus services that were never provided, Westchester County District Attorney Janet DiFiore announced.

Armonk resident William Ahern, 59, owner of Yonkers-based A Plus Transportation, falsely billed for bus service for the Nepperhan Community Center for nearly two years but never provided it, said DiFiore. And co-defendant Anna Sollozzi, a 54-year-old Yonkers resident and the city’s supervisor of school transportation, “would knowingly approve” the invoices for payment.

“The allegations outlined in the Complaint are the essence of fraud, corruption and mismanagement,” said DiFiore in a statement. “These defendants, over an eighteen month period, conspired to defraud the City of Yonkers Board of Education and by extension, all its students by providing non-existent services. How many music or art classes could have been maintained with that misappropriated money?”

According to DiFiore:

Between September 24th, 2012 and April 11th, 2014, William Ahern, owner of A Plus Transportation, located at 57 Alexander Street, in Yonkers, and co-defendant Anna Sollozzo, Transportation Supervisor for the City of Yonkers Board of Education, while aiding and abetting and acting in concert, stole approximately $280,000 from the City of Yonkers for bus services that were never provided for the Nepperhan Community Center.

In effect Ahern and Sollozzo created a phantom bus route by invoicing the Board of Education for bus pickups at the Nepperhan Community Center, when in fact no buses ever were dispatched. Ahern then would submit false invoices for the services that were never provided. Sollozzo would knowingly approve these invoices for payment, notwithstanding the fact that these services were never provided.

During this same time period, Ahern was secretly depositing monies into Sollozzo’s personal bank account totaling $107,250. A Plus Transportation had contracts for bus services with the City of Yonkers totaling approximately $2,805,612 for the period from September 24, 2012 through February 7, 2014.

Sollozzo in turn approved invoices for the buses that were intended to be provided for the Nepperhan Community Center, with full knowledge that the bus services were never provided by A Plus Transportation.

In addition, Sollozzo, from March 8th, 2011 to April 14th, 2014 neglected to remit a total of $282,398 to New York State Income Tax.

The fraud came to light as the Yonkers Inspector General was investigating an unrelated complaint.

Both were arrested Thursday on felony counts. Ahern was charged with:

• one count Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony,
• one count of Rewarding Official Misconduct in the Second Degree, a class “E” Felony,

Sollozzi was charged with

• one count Grand Larceny in the Second Degree, a class “C” Felony,
• one count of Criminal Tax Fraud in the Third Degree, a class ”D” Felony,
• one count of Receiving Reward for Official Misconduct in the Second Degree, a class “E” Felony,
• three counts of Criminal Tax Fraud in the Fourth Degree, class “E” Felonies,
• three counts of Offering a False instrument for Filing in the First Degree, class “E” Felonies.

Their next court appearance is pending, and each faces a maximum sentence of 15 years in prison.

DiFiore added that Assistant District Attorney Brian Conway, Deputy Chief of the Public Integrity Bureau is prosecuting the case.

Photo: Anna Sollozzi, left, and William Ahern. Photo credit: Westchester County DA’s office

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