Oceanside woman indicted for stealing death benefits

Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez announced on May 3 that Oceanside woman Akosua Agyeman was indicted for stealing over $130,000 from the New York City Employees' Retirement System.

Gonzalez said that Agyeman, 48, allegedly attempted to defraud the NYCERS by impersonating a cousin who was the rightful beneficiary following their city transit worker father's death.

The investigation dates back to December 2017, when the district attorney's office alleges that Agyeman submitted an invalid copy of her cousin's birth certificate to NYCERS customer service while trying to get more information on her cousin's father's death benefits.

Agyeman was arraigned on May 3 by Judge Jill Konviser on an indictment and is charged with second-degree grand larceny, first-degree identity theft, first-degree offering a false instrument for filing, and first-degree falsifying business records. She was released without bail and is ordered to return to court on June 29.