Two Arrested for Defrauding National Grid

Two men were arrested Tuesday and charged with defrauding National Grid in an elaborate rebate scam involving at least one Melville business, Suffolk County Police said. 

Ralph Bianco, 53, of Farmingdale, and John Glaser, 53, of Lindenhurst, have each been charged with one count of second degree grand larceny and 11 counts of first degree identity theft.

Police allege Glaser, who was employed by National Grid, helped push through false energy efficiency rebates submitted by Bianco, a heating and air-conditioning technician.

Using the business name JMR Energy, Bianco applied for and received rebate checks – each valued at between $7,200 and $10,000 – from National Grid over a 20-month period, from September 2009 to April 2011, police said. The rebates were for upgrades that were never performed and submitted on behalf of eight Suffolk businesses without their knowledge.

According to police incident reports, a business on Hub Street in Melville reported a loss to National Grid regarding a fraudulent rebate on June 3.

An alert Amityville business owner tipped police off when he was asked to provide a tax ID number for the rebate, cops said.

Glaser was arraigned at First District Court in Central Islip while Bianco surrendered at the First Precinct in West Babylon and is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday. 

Suffolk’s Identity Theft unit believes there are up to 60 other business locations that may have been scammed. Detectives are asking anyone with information to call anonymously to Crime Stoppers at 1-800-220-TIPS.