Appeal from former NEAD head George Moses rebuffed; ample proof of his fraud, court decides

There is ample proof that George Moses did prolifically steal from a neighborhood organization he headed and pilfered money for his own personal use, including a cruise and vitamin supplements, a federal appellate court has ruled.

In its recent ruling, the appellate court rebuffed Moses' appeal of his 2021 conviction and also determined his sentence of 78 months was fair.

The court determined that there was sufficient evidence to justify his convictions on 28 criminal counts, most alleging fraud. Moses had headed the North East Area Development. He is now in a federal prison in Pennsylvania with a release date of late 2026.

"A reasonable jury could find that Moses knew his expenditures on personal items — such as dietary supplements, meal replacements, muscle gain and post-workout shakes, a fitness contraption called Ab Doer 360, spa and salon services, and laundry services — were not permitted uses of NEAD funds, but Mosesnonetheless spent corporate funds on those expenses without disclosing them," the U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit said in its decision.

Moses also chaired the board for the Rochester Housing Authority and was convicted of fraud in that role also.

George Moses in Rochester case argued he had permission

On appeal, Moses argued that an employment agreement with NEAD gave him permission for the personal expenditures that became the foundation of many criminal counts. However, at trial, he was unable to prove the agreement was authentic and not fabricated, and U.S. District Judge Elizabeth Wolford refused to allow it as evidence.

In fact, there were serious questions about the authenticity of the document, the appellate court noted.

The purported agreement "contained numerous inconsistencies in font, spacing, and wording, and Section 4 —the section containing the provision on which Moses sought to rely — was formatted differently from every other section," the court wrote.

Federal prosecutors determined that Moses' crimes, including fraud and lies on federal taxes, added up to about $360,000.

— Gary Craig is a veteran reporter with the Democrat and Chronicle, covering courts and crime and more. You can reach Craig at gcraig@rocheste.gannett.com . He is the author of two books, including "Seven Million: A Cop, a Priest, a Soldier for the IRA, and the Still-Unsolved Rochester Brink's Heist. "

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Appeal from former NEAD head George Moses rebuffed; ample proof of his fraud, court decides