Buffalo, New York (WNY News Now).A Buffalo woman who falsely claimed public assistance payments by hiding her marital status and household income was given a five-year probationary term.Photo by the Erie County DA’s Office of Carmella Miller
On Monday, Carmella Miller, 40, was sentenced in front of Justice Debra Givens of the State Supreme Court. Miller’s sentence includes repaying the $6,406 she unlawfully collected from the Erie County Department of Social Services and doing 200 hours of community service.
Miller allegedly committed welfare fraud by fabricating re-certification petitions for Supplemental Nutritional Assistance Program (SNAP) payments between March 1, 2018, and February 29, 2020, according to the prosecution. She was not qualified for the benefits she received since she neglected to disclose her marriage and her spouse’s income.
On November 12, 2024, Justice Givens convicted Miller of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree and Welfare Fraud in the Third Degree, both Class D crimes, after a one-and-a-half-day, non-jury trial in October 2024.
The Erie County Department of Social Services, the New York State Inspector General’s Office, and Natalie Perez, a confidential criminal investigator, carried out the inquiry. The case was prosecuted by Special Investigations and Prosecutions Bureau Assistant District Attorney Norvella C. Pendergrass.