Guyanese woman convicted in New York for welfare fraud, larceny

Schenectady County District Attorney Robert M. Carney announced on June 1 that on May 22, 2026, a Schenectady County jury convicted Sonia Rajpaul, on multiple felony charges following a five-day trial. Rajpaul, a 31-year-old United States (US)-based Guyanese of Rotterdam, New York, was found guilty of one count of Grand Larceny in the Third Degree (Class D felony), one count of Welfare Fraud in the Third Degree (Class D felony), two counts of Perjury in the First Degree (each a Class D felony), and ten counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree (each a Class E felony). She was found not guilty on one count of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree (Class E felony). Schenectady County Court Judge Matthew J. Sypniewski presided over the trial.
According to the evidence presented in court, the defendant intentionally misrepresented her income and household composition to the Department of Social Services Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programme (SNAP) unit while receiving benefits. SNAP applicants are required to accurately report income, household members, and any income earned within the household to determine eligibility. Rajpaul applied for SNAP benefits in March 2019 and was required to recertify approximately every six months. She also applied for Home Energy Assistance Programme (HEAP) benefits, which provide assistance with heating and utility costs. Between 2019 and November 2023, Rajpaul did not report income from a cleaning business or disclose her husband as part of her household. By failing to report her husband, she also did not disclose his income. By 2023, she was receiving $740 per month in SNAP benefits, which prosecutors said she would not have qualified for had her income and household composition been accurately reported. Trial evidence further showed that the Schenectady County Sheriff’s Department, the Department of Social Services, and the Schenectady County District Attorney’s (DA) Office executed a search warrant at a home in Rotterdam, New York, shared by Rajpaul and her husband, who had recently purchased the property. Investigators found the couple living together, with family photographs displayed throughout the residence. At the time, Rajpaul was still receiving public assistance benefits. The investigation also revealed that the couple was renting out a second property they owned and previously occupied, generating rental income that was not reported to the Department of Social Services. Following the search warrant, Rajpaul was charged with Welfare Fraud, Grand Larceny and Offering a False Instrument for Filing. Prosecutors said she continued the conduct during subsequent proceedings. On May 2, 2024, she testified under oath before a Schenectady County Grand Jury, stating that she did not have a joint bank account with her husband and did not have access to his income. She also testified that she did not receive income from their jointly operated cleaning business.
However, evidence presented at trial showed the existence of three joint bank accounts shared by Rajpaul and her husband. It also showed that she actively received and signed cheques related to their cleaning business. Prosecutors stated that Rajpaul’s actions resulted in the theft of $28,323.22 in SNAP and HEAP benefits.
She is scheduled to be sentenced on August 7, 2026. The case was prosecuted by Assistant DA Leah Hoover. Rajpaul was represented by Attorney Adam Parisi.