A former IT employee for the Troy Housing Authority has been arrested for allegedly collecting a public salary while secretly running his own private tech business during work hours, according to a report from the New York State Comptroller’s Office on October 20.
The arrest of Marsden Chen follows a joint investigation by the State Comptroller’s Division of Investigations, New York State Police, and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s Office of the Inspector General. Officials say Chen stole more than $7,000 in unearned wages by working on contracts for his own company, Diagnostic Services & Installations, while clocked in at his public job.
“Public time is for public work, not to subsidize one’s private business,” said State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, who announced the arrest alongside Rensselaer County District Attorney Mary Pat Donnelly and State Police Superintendent Steven G. James.
The investigation found Chen’s company had active contracts with 17 different clients, including municipalities, fire departments, police departments, and nonprofits. Despite being on the clock for the Troy Housing Authority, Chen was allegedly performing IT work for those clients.
The Housing Authority initially raised concerns after noticing Chen was regularly clocking in and out but was rarely seen on site. That suspicion triggered the formal investigation and a forensic audit that confirmed the wage theft.
Chen was placed on leave in June 2023 and fired two months later. He now faces charges of third-degree grand larceny as a crime of public corruption, a class D felony, and official misconduct. The charges were filed in Troy City Court before Judge Anne L. Coonrad.
Officials stressed that Chen is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
DiNapoli’s office continues to urge the public to report fraud involving taxpayer money. Allegations can be submitted via the Comptroller’s fraud hotline at 1-888-672-4555 or by email at [email protected].
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