The Orange County Sheriff’s Office, in a display of unwavering commitment, announces the arrest of Sharon Toney-Finch, of Newburgh. Toney-Finch was arrested on May 1st, 2024, by the FBI Hudson Valley White Collar Crime Task Force, in conjunction with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division.
After a meticulous two-year investigation, Toney-Finch, 43, of Newburgh, New York, is now facing serious charges. These include wire fraud, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison; theft of government funds, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 10 years in prison; stolen valor, which carries a maximum potential sentence of one year in prison; and altering military discharge paperwork, which carries a maximum potential sentence of one year in prison.
As alleged in the public court filings, law enforcement investigators discovered through the investigation that Toney-Finch used a scheme to defraud donors of her charitable organization and misappropriated donations to homeless veterans for personal use. By her claims that she survived and was injured in a terrorist attack on a vehicle convoy in Iraq, Toney-Finch obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in disability benefits from the VA. Additionally, Toney-Finch had altered her DD-214 military discharge certificate to falsely reflect that she was awarded a Purple Heart.
Orange County Sheriff Paul Arteta provided the following statement: “I want to make it clear that crimes of this nature are deeply disrespectful to the brave men and women who have honorably served our country. Furthermore, exploiting a non-profit organization designed to aid homeless veterans for personal gain is a
despicable act that undermines legitimate charitable organizations. Our agency will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to ensure that those who engage in criminal acts such as these are held accountable”.
A criminal charge is merely an allegation by the police that a defendant has committed a violation of the criminal law, and it is not evidence of guilt. All defendants are presumed innocent and entitled to a fair trial, during which it will be the State of New York’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
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