Carpentry worker Rami Mohamad, of Deer Park, stole $124G from Roslyn Heights synagogue, police say

A Deer Park man who worked as a handyman for a Roslyn Heights synagogue was arraigned Thursday on charges he spent almost $124,000 of the synagogue's money on his LIPA bill and at Dunkin, Stop & Shop and other businesses, authorities said.

Rami Mohamad, 43, was charged with grand larceny after he allegedly accessed a bank account for Chabad of Roslyn and made 201 unauthorized ACH transactions between December 2022 and 2024 that drained $123,989 from the account, Nassau police said in a news release.

According to a sworn felony complaint by a Nassau detective, Chabad director Rabbi Aaron Konikov hired Mohamad in August 2022 and paid him by checks drawn from the synagogue account. Konikov went to the police in December 2024, when he noticed funds were missing from the account and saw bank records of the unauthorized ACH debits. The complaint alleges that Mohamad used the synagogue money to pay off 14 credit cards. 

Mohamad pleaded not guilty at arraignment on Thursday before Judge Medeleine Petrara-Perrin in First District Court, Hempstead. "My client is vigorously maintaining his innocence," said Matthew Tuohy, Mohamad's lawyer. "He's saying ... that there were no unauthorized transactions."

Mohamad was released on bail with "non monetary conditions" and under a temporary order of protection, according to online court records. He will make his next court appearance on Oct. 30.

According to police, who said they partnered with the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office in their investigation, Mohamad had been hired to do "minor carpentry repairs" at the Powerhouse Road synagogue. 

According to court records, Mohamad also faces a charge of trademark counterfeiting in Suffolk. He pleaded not guilty and he and another man paid a $45,000 civil forfeiture related to the case, according to records. He is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 20 in that case. A spokeswoman for the Suffolk district attorney said Tuohy also was representing Mohamad in the trademark case. 

The leaders of Chabad of Roslyn, which offers religious education and synagogue services to hundreds of families, did not immediately comment.