DA: Long Island Men Stole More Than $300K From Home Health Care Agency

Photo: (l-r) Robert Trinagel and Ryan Rudnet

Two Long Island executives were arraigned Tuesday for stealing more than $300,000 from a home health care agency over the course of three years and using that money for personal use, Acting Nassau County District Attorney Madeline Singas announced.

Ryan Rudnet, 41, of Oyster Bay, and Robert Trinagel, 47, of Dix Hills, stole approximately $318,000 from a business that served patients who needed in-home health care services by creating false invoices for consulting services and routing the payments to another company from March 2012 to April 2015, according to the DA.

An employee of the health care agency discovered Trinagel and Rudnet’s scheme when he noticed that a number of payments were made to a company owned by Trinagel called Rovick88, Inc., the DA reports.

Rudnet, the director of finance for the health care agency, approved payments for bogus consulting services on invoices submitted by Trinagel, the DA reports.

“These defendants were in positions of trust and allegedly abused that trust, using the ill-gotten gains to pay for their own personal expenses,” Singas said in a statement.

Rudnet used his share of the stolen proceeds, approximately $236,000, for personal expenses such as mortgage payments, medical bills, landscaping services, pool expenses, education tuition, sports equipment, restaurants and vacations and cash withdrawals, the DA reports.

Trinagel used his share of the stolen funds, approximately $82,000, for personal expenses such as cash withdrawals, construction expenses, credit card payments and mortgage payments, the DA reports.

The men surrendered to NCDA Investigators and were both charged with second degree grand larceny and seven counts of first degree falsifying business records.

Rudent was additionally charged with third degree grand larceny related to an additional thefts of funds from the agency.

Both men face a maximum sentence of 5 to 15 years in prison if convicted of the top charge.

The in-home care agency has since received restitution for the theft through a $150,000 payment made by its insurer and the rest of the balance is already being paid off by Trinagel.

Trinagel’s actions had nothing to do with his employment at Rovick88, Inc. and the company was not aware of his actions, according to the DA.

Trinagel has also agreed to repay the insurer’s $150,000 restitution payment.

The men were ordered to surrender their passports by Judge Harris and were released. They are due back in court on Nov. 5.

Image via NCDA