USPS EMPLOYEE SENTENCED FOR STEALING FROM NEW YORK'S WORKERS' COMPENSATION SYSTEM

New York State Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General Lucy Lang announced the guilty plea and sentencing of Thomas O. Malicki, a United States Postal Service (USPS) employee, on charges that he defrauded the workers’ compensation system of nearly $10,000 by stealing wage reimbursement checks intended for his then-girlfriend’s deceased mother.

Malicki, 28, of Kenmore, NY, pled guilty on June 23, 2026, before the Hon. Katherine Bestine in Village of Kenmore Justice Court to Petit Larceny, a class A misdemeanor. That same day, he paid full restitution of $9,776.52 and was sentenced to a one-year conditional discharge.

“Workers’ compensation benefits are a vital lifeline for people who are legitimately injured on the job, and fraud against the system undermines both its integrity and public trust,” said New York State Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General Lucy Lang. “This public employee was entrusted to serve the common good, not steal from a system meant to protect injured workers. We are grateful to our partners at the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General, New York State Police, and Erie County District Attorney’s Office for helping hold him accountable and secure full restitution.”

“Postal Service employees are expected to uphold the public’s trust both on and off duty,” said Matthew Modafferi, Special Agent in Charge for the United States Postal Service Office of Inspector General Northeast Area Field Office. “Misconduct involving the theft of workers’ compensation benefit checks and misuse of funds intended for others is taken seriously by USPS OIG. We appreciate the partnership of the New York State Workers’ Compensation Fraud Inspector General, the New York State Police, and the Erie County District Attorney’s Office in this matter."

The Inspector General’s investigation found that between September 2020 and July 2021, Malicki stole, endorsed, and deposited eighteen (18) workers’ compensation benefit checks mailed to his then-girlfriend’s mother after she passed away. In an attempt to conceal his actions, he used the stolen funds to purchase USPS money orders before using the money for personal expenses. In total, Malicki defrauded the workers’ compensation system of $9,776.52 in lost-wage benefits to which he was not entitled.

Inspector General Lang thanked her team for their work on this investigation, including Investigators Samantha Palmisano and Erynn Migaj, Investigative Counsel Jill Florkowski, Investigative Assistant Michael Corasanti, Managing Investigator for Workers’ Compensation Fraud Jane Seely, Attorney-in-Charge for Workers’ Compensation Fraud Bryan Richmond, Western Region Chief of Investigations Martin Stanford, and Western Region Deputy Inspector General Jeffrey Hagen.

The Inspector General also expressed her thanks to the U.S. Postal Service Office of Inspector General for their partnership and assistance in the investigation, the New York State Police for their assistance with the arrest, and Erie County District Attorney Michael Keane and his office for prosecuting the matter.