In a guilty plea that punctuates the end of a scheme built on betrayal, Juan Alayo, former president of a Nassau County co-op, has admitted to embezzling more than $26,700 from the community he was elected to protect and serve. The New York Attorney General's office shared that Alayo pleaded to charges including Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree and Petit Larceny. According to the release by Attorney General Letitia James, as part of his plea deal, Alayo agreed to repay the stolen funds and perform 210 hours of community service.
"Juan Alayo’s neighbors elected him to oversee their building, and Mr. Alayo violated their trust to line his own pockets," Attorney General James stated, highlighting the gravity of the deceit practiced by Alayo against an entire community, particularly composed of Spanish-speaking immigrants. Engaged in a duplicitous act, Alayo, who was elected president of the Marlboro Owners Corporation in 2016, exploited his position to write unauthorized checks to himself and his cleaning company, A&J Cleaning Services, whom the co-op board had never approved, accordung to the New York Attorney General's office.
Alayo's tenure, which spanned from 2016 through to 2023, saw the calculated siphoning off of almost $30,000 in co-op funds. The Attorney General's announcement detailed that Alayo masked the embezzlement by falsifying business records—checks recorded as payments for legitimate services like "TRAGAR," an oil company, were in reality funneled into his own business account.
It wasn't until Alayo vacated his position and residence in 2023 that his replacement and the co-op's board uncovered the financial discrepancies. The mismatched financial documentation led to an investigation which, after being reviewed by the Nassau District Attorney’s Office, referred the case to the Attorney General. Alayo, before selling his apartment and moving out of the building, managed to carry out a theft undisclosed. Now, as part of his plea, if Alayo fails to provide restitution and complete his ordered community service, he faces a potential one-year jail sentence.
Assistant Attorney General Jimei Hon, under the supervision of various officials within the Public Integrity Bureau of the Division for Criminal Justice, led the prosecution of Alayo's case. They received thanks from Attorney General James for the collaborative efforts with the Nassau District Attorney’s Office. The New York State Police, along with Detective Investigator Felix Krasnov and senior investigators, were commended for their vital contributions to bringing the case to its resolution.
