The founder of a Montgomery-based charitable organization dedicated to the well-being of homeless veterans and premature babies has been arrested, after authorities accused her of falsifying her military record and defrauding donors to the charity.

Sharon Toney-Finch, 43, of Newburgh, was arrested last week by the FBI Hudson Valley White Collar Crime Task Force, in conjunction with the Orange County Sheriff’s Office, the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs – Office of Inspector General, and the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Division. She is accused of wire fraud, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 20 years in prison; theft of government funds, which carries a maximum potential sentence of 10 years in prison; stolen valor, which carries a maximum potential sentence of one year in prison; and altering military discharge paperwork, which carries a maximum potential sentence of one year in prison.

As alleged in the public court filings, law enforcement investigators discovered through the investigation that Toney-Finch used a scheme to defraud donors of her charitable organization and misappropriated donations to homeless veterans for personal use. By her claims that she survived and was injured in a terrorist attack on a vehicle convoy in Iraq, Toney-Finch obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars in disability benefits from the VA. Additionally, Toney-Finch had altered her DD-214 military discharge certificate to falsely reflect that she was awarded a Purple Heart.

Toney-Finch is the founder of the YIT Foundation, named for her son, Yerik Israel Toney. The organization’s website described her as a disabled military veteran created YIT in honor of the premature birth of her son Yerik.

“The YIT Foundation strives to raise awareness of premature births, offer assistance to preemies (and their families), and provide a place to stay or transportation while the babies are in NICU,” reads a statement on the website.

“We also help homeless and low-income military service veterans in need of living assistance.”

Toney-Finch, in a 2022 interview with the Wallkill Valley Times, said she joined the Army after the 9-11 attacks in 2001 and was badly injured in 2010, when her convoy was attacked and her best friend was killed. She also described a difficult pregnancy and the premature birth of her son who, sadly, passed away at the age of seven months.

Toney-Finch founded The YIT Foundation, headquartered in Maybrook, to raise awareness of premature births, offer assistance to preemies (and their families) and provide a place to stay or transportation while the babies are in NICU. The foundation also helps homeless and low-income military service veterans in need of living assistance.

That same year, YIT reached an agreement with the Town of Montgomery to lease the historic Arnott-Haber House for use as a temporary shelter for homeless veterans. The house, which dates back to 1820, was saved from demolition and relocated from its original site to accommodate the Amazon warehouse that was built at the site.

But the deal fell through and her story began to unravel after Toney-Finch falsely claimed that homeless veterans had been kicked out of a Newburgh hotel to make room for asylum seekers who had been bussed here from New York City. The story attracted national attention and prompted Assemblyman Brian Maher (R-Walden) and State Senator Rob Rolison (R-Poughkeepsie) to introduce legislation aimed at protecting homeless veterans.

Maher, once a staunch supporter of Toney-Finch, began to distance himself from her, calling for an investigation into the YIT foundation.

“While I believed Sharon was telling the truth, I do want to apologize for those that have been negatively impacted since this news broke,” Maher said at the time.

The Town of Montgomery subsequently made a similar arrangement with Mental Health America of Dutchess County to provide temporary shelter for homeless veterans.

“I want to make it clear that crimes of this nature are deeply disrespectful to the brave men and women who have honorably served our country,” said Orange County Sheriff Paul Arteta. “Furthermore, exploiting a non-profit organization designed to aid homeless veterans for personal gain is a despicable act that undermines legitimate charitable organizations. Our agency will continue to work tirelessly with our law enforcement partners to ensure that those who engage in criminal acts such as these are held accountable”.

In the wake of her arrest, State Senator James D. Skoufis (D-Cornwall) has introduced a bill that would criminalize false claims of military service, veteran status, as having received military honors or decorations, or previous work as a first responder. If passed, S.9154 would amend the penal law, creating the state crime of stolen valor.

“Lying about one’s veteran status and receipt of military honors such as the Purple Heart is a disgraceful act,” Skoufis said. “It should also be a criminal act. The alleged actions by Ms. Toney-Finch - amplified at the time by some local, unapologetic elected officials who sought to score cheap political points - must have consequences. While stolen valor is rightfully a federal crime, it’s high time we criminalized this egregious, damaging behavior in state law as it is an ultimate betrayal of societal trust.”