A top official-turned-embezzler in the Staten Island DA’s Office tried to dodge jail time Friday by blaming his crime on being a shopaholic — but the judge wasn’t buying it.
The DA’s former director of procurement, William Nelson, was slapped with 24 months behind bars Friday, just six months shy of the maximum sentence possible.
“I’m not buying, in English, this ‘shopaholic,’ explanation,” Brooklyn federal Judge Raymond Dearie said before handing Nelson his sentence.
The judge was citing a report that the defense had filed on Nelson’s behalf in which a clinical social worker claimed that the disgraced former public servant “started to enjoy shopping and buying material things and piling up ‘stuff,’ as it were,” to compensate for an allegedly abusive father.
“While he leapt at the carrot of instant gratification with the best of intentions, what Mr. Nelson must be blamed for is his willful blindness to the collateral damage the looming stick was destined to do to those he clearly cared for most,” one filing read.
But Judge Dearie, shaking his head, said, “Just once, in 33 years, I want someone to say ‘Your Honor, I did it, I take the blame, I take responsibility.’ ”
Nelson siphoned $441,262 from the DA’s office over a 10-year period, taking money that was meant for things such as victims services and instead spending it on everything from pricey cigars and booze to trips to Disney World. His mistake? Posting photos of his ill-gotten gains on social media.
While Staten Island DA Michael McMahon was not in court, he sent Executive Assistant DA Timothy Koller to read a scathing statement on his behalf.
The letter slammed the 45-year-old Nelson for “undermining the confidence of the public” in the office by stealing taxpayer dollars and parading “the fruits of his gluttony on social media in a boastful, unrepentant manner.
“He used an office credit card as his own cash cow during a continuum of purchases of knives, sporting events tickets, alcohol, video games, personal groceries, survival gear, airfare, trips, vacations, clothing, and jewelry. He fed his ego, not his family,” McMahon wrote.
Nelson was busted in 2017 the photos to his Instagram account.
He pleaded guilty in April to a single count of embezzling federal funds and faced up to 30 months behind bars.
In addition to the sentence, Nelson will be forced to repay the $441,262 he stole.
