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Wildwood Mayor Admits Tax Dodge: Feds Wildwood Mayor Admits Tax Dodge: Feds
Wildwood Mayor Admits Tax Dodge: Feds Wildwood Mayor Peter J. Byron admitted Friday that he ducked paying taxes on $40,425 that he received for working as a salesman for a law firm, federal authorities said. Byron, 67, officially pleaded guilty to twice willfully "aiding and assisting in the preparation and presentation of fraudulent tax returns" to the IRS for calendar years 2017 and 2018, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger announced on March 24. The mayor still has a state case to deal with. He, former Mayor Ernest V. Troiano Jr. and City Commissioner Steven E. Mikulski were charged last year with fraudulently collecting stat…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
IRS Bags Hundreds Of Tax Cheats, Money Launderers As COVID Relief Fraud Tops $3.2 Billion IRS Bags Hundreds Of Tax Cheats, Money Launderers As COVID Relief Fraud Tops $3.2 Billion
IRS Bags Hundreds Of Tax Cheats, Money Launderers As COVID Relief Fraud Tops $3.2 Billion It wasn't long after the government began offering COVID relief loans three years ago that IRS investigators were hot on the tails of scammers. Since then, agents with IRS Criminal Investigation have pursued 975 tax and money-laundering cases nationwide involving $3.2 billion worth of fraudulently obtained loans, credits and payments meant to help American workers, families, and small businesses who were rocked by the pandemic. Over that time, IRS-CI has kept its conviction rate at nearly 100%, federal authorities say. It has produced indictments against 458 defendants, …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Feds Charge Exiled Chinese Tycoon With $1B Fraud That Funded $26.5M Mahwah Mansion, More Feds Charge Exiled Chinese Tycoon With $1B Fraud That Funded $26.5M Mahwah Mansion, More
Feds Charge Exiled Chinese Tycoon With $1B Fraud That Funded $26.5M Mahwah Mansion, More Exiled Chinese tycoon Miles Guo was arrested by the FBI Wednesday on charges of swindling his online followers out of more than $1 billion that the government said he used, in part, to buy a 58-room mansion in Mahwah. Some of the agents were still at Guo’s 15-room penthouse in the Sherry-Netherland Hotel on Manhattan’s Upper East Side the afternoon of March 15, six hours after he’d been arrested there, when a mysterious fire broke out on the 18th floor, responders said. No injuries were reported, but authorities said the blaze significantly damaged Guo’s unit. No one drew any immediate conn…

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
'Bling Bishop' From Bergen Accused Of Faking Docs To Finance Paramus Mansion: 'FBI Set Me Up' 'Bling Bishop' From Bergen Accused Of Faking Docs To Finance Paramus Mansion: 'FBI Set Me Up'
'Bling Bishop' From Bergen Accused Of Faking Docs To Finance Paramus Mansion: 'FBI Set Me Up' A flashy Brooklyn bishop who lives in Bergen County – and was infamously robbed at gunpoint during a live-streamed church service last year – claims the FBI set him. Lamor Whitehead was already facing charges of swindling a female parishioner out of $90,000 in retirement money when a new indictment this week accused him of fabricating bank records to try and finance his million-dollar mansion in Paramus. Whitehead made it appear on paper that he controlled an LLC that had an average balance of more than $2 million when it actually had less than 10 bucks, the indictment returned in the Sout…

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by Jerry DeMarco
Lifestyle
Gia Giudice Inks Position With Immigration Firm Years After Dad's Deportation Gia Giudice Inks Position With Immigration Firm Years After Dad's Deportation
Gia Giudice Inks Position With Immigration Firm Years After Dad's Deportation "What, like it's hard?" The Martinez Immigration firm channeled its inner Elle Woods in welcoming Gia Giudice to the firm. The 22-year-old Morris County native, whose mom Teresa starred on "Real Housewives of New Jersey," announced she accepted a post-grad position at the immigration firm. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Kathleen Martinez (@attorneymartinez) The Rutgers University student is set to graduate in the fall, and will join Martinez Immigration, a virtual firm helmed by Kathleen Martinez. Gia's dad, Joe Giudice, infa…

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by Annie DeVoe
News
Central Jersey Residents Robbed By Cryptocurrency, 'Mexican Cartel' Scams Totaling Nearly $100K Central Jersey Residents Robbed By Cryptocurrency, 'Mexican Cartel' Scams Totaling Nearly $100K
Central Jersey Residents Robbed By Cryptocurrency, 'Mexican Cartel' Scams Totaling Nearly $100K A pair of residents in Middlesex were robbed in separate scams, police said.  One scam was a person saying they were a member of the Mexican Cartel. A second scam involved investments in cryptocurrency via LinkedIn, Middlesex police said. On Jan. 10, a resident of Tree Top Road reported they were a victim of fraud. The resident reported that they were contacted through LinkedIn by an individual offering a cryptocurrency investment opportunity. After transferring funds over the course of several months, the individual ceased all communications and the resident r…

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by Jon Craig
News
‘Bling’ Bishop From Bergen Seized By FBI, Charged With Swindling Retiree Out Of $90,000 ‘Bling’ Bishop From Bergen Seized By FBI, Charged With Swindling Retiree Out Of $90,000
‘Bling’ Bishop From Bergen Seized By FBI, Charged With Swindling Retiree Out Of $90,000 A flashy Brooklyn bishop who lives in Bergen County – and was infamously robbed at gunpoint during a live-streamed church service earlier this year – swindled one of his parishioners out of $90,000 in retirement money that he used for himself, federal authorities charged. Lamor Whitehead, a 44-year-old Paramus resident known for his Rolls Royce, Gucci suits and bling, was arrested by federal agents on Monday, Dec. 19, on an indictment that charges him wire fraud, extortion and lying to the FBI. The indictment returned by a grand jury in U.S. District Court in Manhattan accuses Whitehead of …

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by Jerry DeMarco
News
Hoboken Influencer Ran $114 Million 'Pump And Dump' Stock Scheme: Feds Hoboken Influencer Ran $114 Million 'Pump And Dump' Stock Scheme: Feds
Hoboken Influencer Ran $114 Million 'Pump And Dump' Stock Scheme: Feds A social media influencer from Hoboken and seven other men were charged with running a $114 million "pump and dump" stock scheme. Mitchell Hennessey, 24, used his extensive social media following to hype interest in particular securities by posting false and misleading information on Twitter and Discord, according to prosecutors in the Southern District of Texas. The influencers and self-proclaimed traders artificially inflated the prices of the securities by hyping them up on their platforms, only to "dump" them after the fact, prosecutors said.From in or around January 2020 to in or aroun…

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by Annie DeVoe
Police & Fire
Jersey Shore Man Sentenced To Prison For $200K In Thefts From Ailing Victim: Prosecutor Jersey Shore Man Sentenced To Prison For $200K In Thefts From Ailing Victim: Prosecutor
Jersey Shore Man Sentenced To Prison For $200K In Thefts From Ailing Victim: Prosecutor A 56-year-old man from Lacey Township has been sentenced to five years in prison for stealing more than $200,000 from an ailing victim, authorities said. Ross Miserendino will be required to make restitution to the victim in the amount of $217,300, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer. An investigation conducted by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad and Lacey Township Police Department revealed that beginning in 2019, the victim began to suffer from medical issues which caused her to be temporarily unable to manage her finances…

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by Jon Craig
Police & Fire
KNOW THEM? Police Seek ID For Fraud Suspects At Mercer County TJ Maxx KNOW THEM? Police Seek ID For Fraud Suspects At Mercer County TJ Maxx
Know Them? Police Seek ID For Fraud Suspects At Mercer County TJ Maxx Recognize them? Police are seeking the public’s help identifying a pair of fraud suspects at a TJ Maxx store in Mercer County. The suspects, pictured above, were involved in an unspecified fraudulent incident at the East Windsor store around 2:40 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 24, police said. The suspects left in a silver Ford Escape, according to police. Scroll down to view additional photos. Public Assistance Needed: The East Windsor Police Department is currently investigating a fraud that occurred at T.J.... Posted by East Windsor Police Department on Monday, October 3, 2022 Anyone wi…

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by Valerie Musson
Police & Fire
Boyfriend Stole $217K From Ailing Jersey Shore Woman: Prosecutor Boyfriend Stole $217K From Ailing Jersey Shore Woman: Prosecutor
Boyfriend Stole $217K From Ailing Jersey Shore Woman: Prosecutor A 56-year-old man from Lacey Township has admitted to spending more than $171,000 of his girlfriend's money while she was having medical issues, authorities said. He also stole other belongings bringing the total theft to $217,300, they said.  On Wednesday, Aug. 31, Ross Miserendino pleaded guilty to theft, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer. Miserendino will also be required to make restitution to the victim in the amount of $217,300 as part of his sentence on Nov. 4, Billhimer said. An investigation conducted by the Ocean County Prosecutor’…

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by Jon Craig
Schools
Ex-NJ Assistant Principal Who Faked Reason For Slip-Fall Getting Job Back Ex-NJ Assistant Principal Who Faked Reason For Slip-Fall Getting Job Back
Ex-NJ Assistant Principal Who Faked Reason For Slip-Fall Getting Job Back A former assistant principal of a Hudson County school who faked her slip-and-fall in a stairwell will be getting her job back, the Superior Court of New Jersey Appellate Division ruled. Amanda Sanjuan was hired as a bilingual education teacher in West New York in 1997, and was appointed assistant principal at Memorial High School in 2019. One night in February 2020, Sanjuan was attending an event at the high school when she fell down a flight of stairs and landed on the floor, according to court papers. After hearing a commotion, a teacher and a custodian rushed to the stairs wh…

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by Cecilia Levine