Three New York prison guards, including two fiancees, were arrested for faking sick leave for over a year and forfeiting their taxpayer salaries.
All three defendants work at Rikers Island, the troubled and chronically understaffed prison on Manhattan’s East River.
Steven Cange, 49, Monica Coaxum, 36, and Eduardo Trinidad, 42, have been charged with federal program fraud for abusing the system’s paid sick leave policy. The trio forged hundreds of doctor’s letters for injuries to various parts of the body, including shoulders, elbows, wrists, fingers, hips, knees and ankles.
United States Attorney Breon Peace said of the case: “Amid an ongoing personnel crisis at Rikers Island, the defendants defrauded New Yorkers by fraudulently receiving their full salary while on sick leave for over a year.
“These correctional officers have broken their oath to protect inmates and compromise the safety of their colleagues.”
Cange, who has been a correctional officer with the DOC since late 2014, has reportedly been on sick leave since March 2021 and has been on a full salary of about $160,000 the entire time.
Likewise, Trinidad amassed more than $140,000 in salaries while reported suffering from multiple injuries.
Monica Coaxum, who is engaged to Trinidad, cashed her $80,000 salary while allegedly faking multiple injuries and illnesses from March 2021 to May 2022.
Coaxum and Trinidad, who met at work in 2020, were in the process of planning their wedding during their free time, according to their wedding website.
The Rikers Island prison in New York on Manhattan’s East River, where three guards were arrested for cheating the system by each calling in sick for more than a year while continuing to collect their salaries
Each officer submitted dozens of fraudulent medical certificates to the New York Department of Justice while on extended paid leave and perfectly healthy and active lifestyles
All three officers are accused of forging dozens of medical documents claiming they attended doctor’s appointments, which discredited the service providers to the law enforcement officers investigating the crimes.
Cange claimed he was suffering from a range of ailments, including dizziness and negative side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine. He allegedly submitted more than 100 fraudulent medical notes to DOC showing he was seeing physical therapy or other medical providers.
Law enforcement officials observed Cange go about normal life activities without apparent difficulty.
Coaxum claimed she injured her knee, shoulder, wrist and elbow, and Trinidad said the same about his shoulder, elbow, wrist, fingers, hip, knee and ankle.
Both underwent surgery for various injuries and also said they were unable to return to work due to “trauma” resulting from the physical damage.
In connection with the investigation, agents reviewed the defendants’ phone records and iCloud and found a conversation on Coaxum’s device in which she openly discussed her employer’s fraud.
“Monica, you’re living your best life but cheating on your job,” one participant wrote in a group chat, according to a criminal complaint against her.
‘Yes, still paid at home, unlimited sick baby. become like me Live my best life,” Coaxum replied.
She then sent a picture of herself and her fiancé at a party.
The couple filed hundreds of fake doctor’s letters and repeatedly violated the DOC’s requirement to remain in their homes outside of the 1-5 p.m. hours.
Ultimately, both Coaxum and Trinidad were told their employment would be terminated if they did not return to work.
The New York City prison is notoriously understaffed and has been the scene of a number of significant problems, including prisoner deaths and attempted suicides
According to each guard’s union contract, the DOC officer’s unlimited paid sick leave covers “the entire period of incapacity for work due to illness, injury, or mental or physical infirmity, whether on duty or not.”
However, if an officer requires sick leave for more than two consecutive days, the individual must report to the Department of Corrections’ Health Management Division.
In addition, if an employee has been on sick leave for more than eight days in a calendar year, the officer is not allowed to leave the house outside of the 1pm to 5pm hours to ensure the system is not abused.
If a doctor’s appointment is outside of the 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. time, an officer must “sign out” by calling the DOC before leaving and upon returning from their home. He or she must also provide the DOC with documentation confirming his or her legitimacy within 48 hours of the appointment.
The criminal complaint against Coaxum and Trinidad states: “These correctional officers committed fraud by abusing the DOC’s sick leave policy to avoid work, falsely claiming they were too injured or ill to work, and to the DOC misrepresenting how they spend their time and, in some cases, submitting false records to the DOC about medical appointments they did not attend.’
If convicted, each officer faces a maximum of 10 years in prison.
Rikers Island has long been the scene of a number of increasingly significant problems, including prisoner deaths and attempted suicides, and staff shortages, to which the actions of these three officers have contributed.
In August of this year, Michael Nieves died as the 13th prisoner suspected of committing suicide.
A DOC captain and two guards were suspended for allegedly watching Nieves bleed to death in front of them after slitting his throat with a razor.
Former New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio agreed to completely close the prison complex by 2026 and open four new prisons at a total cost of $8.7 billion. The plan was then pushed back to 2027, but current Mayor Eric Adams said he doubted the prison could close by then.
“I need the people that are idealistic to deal with the realism of this thing … If you still have larger numbers of people that can fit in the precinct jails, then what do we do with those that continue shootings, robberies , assault, rape and other crimes? What are we going to do with them,” Adams said in September.
As of August 2022, Rikers housed more than 5,700 criminals.