A former correction officer from New York’s Rikers Island has been hit with an array of charges stemming from allegations of falsifying medical records. Equanna Escalera, a 43-year-old Bellport, LI resident, was arraigned on charges of grand larceny and offering a false instrument for filing, as reported in a recent release from the Queens District Attorney’s Office.
The case against Escalera, detailed by Queens DA Melinda Katz and NYC Department of Investigation Commissioner Jocelyn E. Strauber, hinges on Escalera’s submission of documentation for medical treatment she allegedly never received. The documentation policy, intending to curb misuse, requires that it should detail the treatment of uniformed correction officers who take an extended sick leave.
According to the investigation, Escalera is accused of providing 31 falsified letters claiming she was treated on 29 separate occasions between March and December 2022 at a Bronx pain management center to justify her sick leave. Despite the efforts to ensure accountability, defrauded city thousands of dollars in stolen wages, as Commissioner Strauber points out, were still collected by Escalera, totaling $11,200.78. “Her conduct falls far short of the City’s high standards for correction officers whose work is critical to maintaining safety and order in the City’s jails,” Strauber said in a statement obtained by the Queens District Attorney’s Office…