Former New York Supreme Court Judge Receives 15-Month Jail Sentence for Obstruction in Financial Fraud Case

An ex-New York Supreme Court Judge has been sentenced to 15 months in prison for her part in obstructing a federal investigation into financial fraud.

The Associate Press reports that Sylvia Ash was convicted in December on multiple charges related to the investigation of financial fraud at the Municipal Credit Union.

Ex-State Supreme Court Justice Sylvia Ash, 64, was sentenced by Judge Lewis A. Kaplan in Manhattan after her December conviction on charges of conspiracy, obstruction of justice and making a false statement to a federal agent in an investigation of the Municipal Credit Union.

The sentencing judge called Ash’s actions “dishonest, corrupt and frankly outrageous.”

The credit union is a nonprofit financial institution headquartered in New York City with more than $4.2 billion in accounts as it provides banking services to over a half million members.

Authorities said the financial crimes occurred while Ash, a Brooklyn judge, was on the credit union’s board of directors from May 2008 to August 2016, when she resigned. She had served as the board’s chair from May 2015 until her resignation.

Ash is accused (and now convicted) of covering up the financial misdeeds of the credit union’s former CEO during her tenure as the board president. In return, she received numerous kickbacks, including tens of thousands of dollars in financial reimbursements for purchases such as airfare, hotel stays and entertainment. She was also gifted annual birthday parties at a local minor league baseball stadium, and had her phone, cable and other bills paid for by the credit union. As a member of the New York state judiciary, Ash was required to report all gifts and benefits, but reported none between 2012 and 2018.

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