SYRACUSE -- The State Labor Department has charged 53 people from throughout Central New York with fraudulently obtaining unemployment benefits. At a time when hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers are out of work, the State Department of Labor is cracking down on unemployment fraud that last year cost taxpayers and employers $23 million.

At a news conference Monday featuring district attorneys from across upstate New York, State Labor Commissioner Patricia Smith announced the 53 arrests. All are accused of fraudulently collecting unemployment benefits totaling nearly $250,000. Smith says rather than use the money for essentials, many spent, "fraudulently obtained unemployment checks on casino trips, nail salons, on line video games, online dating services even sexual enhancement products."

Last week the Department of Labor processed 600,000 unemployment claims, so officials feel the "cheats" think they can simply hide in a huge bureaucracy. Commissioner Smith says what they don't know is that they're being traced. "Every time an employer has a new hire, he's supposed to submit to the tax department a new hire report" she says, "We double-check that new hire report against our unemployment insurance claims on a weekly basis."

In addition to the 53 arrests announced Monday, Smith says there are 70 more pending arrests of people who fraudulently collected more than $300,000.

Cayuga County District Attorney Jon Budelmann offered them advice: "Those who are filing fraudulently wake up. We're our there. We're looking for you. We will find you. Stop doing it now."

The Labor Department has set up a confidential hotline for unemployment insurance fraud: 1-888-598-2077.