Farash grand-nephew indicted

Farash grand-nephew indicted on theft charges
Steve Orr
March 1, 2010
Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20100301/NEWS01/100301008
Former Farash Corp. chief executive Matthew S. Aroesty has been indicted on charges that he stole more than $50,000 from the company founded by his late great-uncle, Max M. Farash.

A Monroe County grand jury handed up an indictment Friday on a single count of second-degree grand larceny, which applies to theft of an amount greater than $50,000 and less than $1 million. The indictment came just two days before Farash died in a Webster nursing home at the age of 95.

The indictment likely will further ratchet up the discord between the 44-year-old Aroesty and a lawyer who has served as Farash’s court-appointed property guardian. The lawyer, James C. Gocker, provided evidence to the Brighton Police Department last year that led to Aroesty’s arrest in September on the grand larceny charge. The case then was sent to the grand jury.

Officials said then that the charge involved diversion of Farash Corp. assets to Aroesty’s personal benefit.

Gocker also filed suit last month against Aroesty and Farash’s only child, daughter Lynn Farash, alleging they had wrongly diverted more than $12 million from the company.

Among specific accusations in that lawsuit is a claim that Aroesty charged $318,000 in personal expenses to the company. It was not clear whether those were the same actions that gave rise to the criminal charge.

Aroesty was chief executive of Farash Corp. from 2004 to 2007. The criminal charge, however, is based on alleged actions between February 2002 and November 2003, when Aroesty was a vice president of the company.