Indictment Unsealed in Check Forging Case

DELHI  – District Attorney Shawn Smith announced today that Gerard F. H. Johnson, 41, of Cobleskill, New York, appeared in Delaware County Court on April 16, 2024, and was arraigned on a sealed indictment.    

Johnson appeared before the Honorable John L. Hubbard, Delaware County Court Judge, and a Six Count Indictment was unsealed.  Counts One, Three, and Five of the indictment charged the defendant with Criminal Possession of a forged Instrument in the Second Degree, a Class D Felony.  The indictment alleges that on three separate occasions, on or about March 16, 2024, the defendant possessed forged checks from the personal checking accounts of three separate victims.  It is alleged that the defendant intended to defraud the victims by cashing those checks after removing the designated party and making them payable to himself.  

Counts Two and Four of the indictment each charged the defendant with Grand Larceny in the Fourth Degree, a Class D Felony. Those counts allege that on or about March 16th, 2024, the defendant stole over $2,000.00 from two separate bank accounts by using checks he had forged so that they were made payable to himself instead of the intended party.  Count Six of the indictment charged the defendant with Petit Larceny, a Class A Misdemeanor. The defendant is alleged to have stolen and altered another check while in the Village of Delhi.  

After being arraigned, the defendant pleaded not guilty to the indictment.  Judge Hubbard remanded the defendant to the Delaware County Correctional Facility in lieu of $30,000.00 cash bail.

Chief Assistant District Attorney Richard D. Northrup, Jr. presented the case to the Grand Jury. 

District Attorney Shawn Smith commended Delaware County Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Eric Alexander and Investigator David Barnes for their thorough investigation of this case. 

As are all persons accused of a crime, this defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.  

Shawn J. Smith 

District Attorney 

Delaware County