A Queens man pleaded guilty in federal court in Rochester to theft of government money.
Federal prosecutors say 29-year-old Charles Novak conspired with a group of people to cash multiple forged U.S. Postal money orders in Rochester and Syracuse last year. The money orders had been altered to raise their apparent value from a $1.51 to $1,000 each. Novak and the others in the gang stole more than $48,000 from the postal service until Postal Inspectors caught up with them.
Novak was caught at the Jefferson Road Post Office in Henrietta when a Postal Inspector approached him and he ran, dropping his cellphone as he tried to make his getaway. The phone led investigators straight to him.