NJ GoFundMe Scammer Who Spent Veteran's Cash Gambling Learns His Fate NJ GoFundMe Scammer Who Spent Veteran's Cash Gambling Learns His Fate
NJ GoFundMe Scammer Who Spent Veteran's Cash Gambling Learns His Fate One of the defendants who conceived the fictitious GoFundMe “Paying it Forward” campaign was sentenced to five years in New Jersey state prison for participating in the fraudulent scheme that misled donors into contributing more than $402,000 to a fabricated cause, authorities said. Mark D’Amico, 43, of Florence, was sentenced Friday, Aug. 5 in Superior Court in Mount Holly, according to Burlington County Prosecutor LaChia L. Bradshaw D'Amico pleaded guilty in December 2019 to misapplication of entrusted property, she said. He's already serving a 27-month sentence in federal prison on…
Flashy Bishop Robbed During Service Put Stolen Savings Toward $4.4M NJ Mansion, Lawsuit Says Flashy Bishop Robbed During Service Put Stolen Savings Toward $4.4M NJ Mansion, Lawsuit Says
Flashy Bishop Robbed During Service Put Stolen Savings Toward $4.4M NJ Mansion, Lawsuit Says A flashy Brooklyn bishop robbed during a live-streamed service stole funds from a congregant and put some of them toward a payment on his $4.4 million New Jersey mansion, according to a lawsuit filed last year. Pauline Anderson accuses bishop Lamor Whitehead of convincing her to invest nearly her entire life savings in one of his firms under the promise he could help her improve her credit score and buy a home, according to the suit. Anderson, 56, wrote the bishop of Leaders of Tomorrow International Churches a $90,000 check, as he promised to give her $100 monthly allowances for living exp…
Feds: NJ Service Station Manager Admits Stealing $78,000 From Amtrak, Regular Customers Feds: NJ Service Station Manager Admits Stealing $78,000 From Amtrak, Regular Customers
Feds: NJ Service Station Manager Admits Stealing $78,000 From Amtrak, Regular Customers A New Jersey service station manager admitted stealing $78,000 from more than 17 customers, including Amtrak, through bogus charges for gas, federal authorities said. Umer Hassan Mir, 40, of South Amboy told a federal judge in Newark on Tuesday that he deposited the charges into the coffers of a Delta gas station in Metuchen, then siphoned off the proceeds in cash from the register over the course of 3½ years. Some of the bogus charges were entered on fuel credit cards leased by the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) and assigned to Amtrak vehicles, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger…
Unregistered Home Contractor Charged With $150K In 'Improvement' Thefts On Jersey Shore Unregistered Home Contractor Charged With $150K In 'Improvement' Thefts On Jersey Shore
Unregistered Home Contractor Charged With $150K In 'Improvement' Thefts On Jersey Shore A 35-year-old Ocean County man was charged with theft by deception for home contracting, authorities said. On Thursday, June 23, Toms River Police Detective Robert O’Neill arrested and charged Robert Cohan, of Lakehurst, with theft as well as multiple counts of unregistered home improvement contracting, police said. Beginning in February, and continuing through May, Cohan allegedly targeted the residents of the Gardens of Pleasant Plains in a home improvement contracting scheme. He was soliciting the residents to do driveway, sidewalk, as well as roof, door and othe…
Current, Former Wildwood Mayors, Commissioner Charged With Scamming Health Benefits Program Current, Former Wildwood Mayors, Commissioner Charged With Scamming Health Benefits Program
Current, Former Wildwood Mayors, Commissioner Charged With Scamming Health Benefits Program The city of Wildwood’s former and current mayor and a city commissioner broke the law – committing “breaches of the public trust” -- by collecting health benefits that they didn’t earn, state authorities said Friday. Wildwood Mayor Peter J. Byron, former Mayor Ernest V. Troiano Jr., and current City Commissioner Steven E. Mikulski were charged criminally for fraudulently participating in the State Health Benefits Program (SHBP), Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said. In order to be eligible for the benefits, they needed to be full-time employees “whose hours of work are…
$6.8M COVID-19 Scam: Ex-Hedge Fund Manager Gets 4+ Years, No Parole $6.8M COVID-19 Scam: Ex-Hedge Fund Manager Gets 4+ Years, No Parole
$6.8M Covid-19 Scam: Ex-Hedge Fund Manager Gets 4+ Years, No Parole A dual New York/Florida resident was sentenced in New Jersey to a plea-bargained 51 months in federal prison for fraudulently collecting more than $6.8 million in COVID-19 payroll protection loans -- $3 million of which he lost in the stock market. Gregory J. Blotnick, 35, will have to serve just about all of the sentence because there's no parole in the federal prison system. In addition to the prison term, U.S. District Judge Brian R. Martinotti sentenced Blotnick in Newark to two years of supervised release and ordered him to pay restitution of $4,577,631. Blotnick told the judge last f…
Bean Counter Who Embezzled Hundreds Of Thousands From Bergen Tour Company Sentenced Bean Counter Who Embezzled Hundreds Of Thousands From Bergen Tour Company Sentenced
Bean Counter Who Embezzled Hundreds Of Thousands From Bergen Tour Company Sentenced An accountant from Lyndhurst was sentenced to a plea-bargained 21 months in federal prison for her role in embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from a guided tour company she worked for. Ruby Baroni, 55, took a deal from the government rather than face trial – the same as her former manager, Estela Laluf, 76, of River Edge. Laluf was sentenced in April to an agreed-upon 27 months in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Julien Xavier Neals sentenced Baroni on Thursday to two years of supervised release and ordered her to pay $295,297 in restitution. Between 2010 and 2016, she and Lal…
Theft Of $8.2M In HIV Meds From NJ Vets Hospital Gets Rx Tech 2½ Years Without Parole Theft Of $8.2M In HIV Meds From NJ Vets Hospital Gets Rx Tech 2½ Years Without Parole
Theft Of $8.2M In HIV Meds From NJ Vets Hospital Gets Rx Tech 2½ Years Without Parole UPDATE: A former pharmacy tech was sentenced to a plea-bargained 57 months in federal prison Thursday for stealing $8.2 million worth of HIV medications from a New Jersey veterans hospital to sell on the black market, authorities said. Lisa M. Hoffman, 50, of Orange, will have to serve just about all of the term because there’s no parole in the federal prison system. U.S. District Court Judge Esther Salas also sentenced Hoffman on Thursday to three years of supervised release while ordering her to pay the full $8.29 million in restitution – and to forfeit an additional $450,000. Hoffman wa…
Jersey Shore Mayor Hit With New Charges Of Theft, Misconduct: Prosecutor Jersey Shore Mayor Hit With New Charges Of Theft, Misconduct: Prosecutor
Jersey Shore Mayor Hit With New Charges Of Theft, Misconduct: Prosecutor A mayor from the Jersey Shore has been charged with additional counts of theft and misconduct, authorities said. Paul Kennedy, 66, of Ocean Gate, was charged with three counts of official misconduct and three counts of theft on Wednesday, May 4, according to Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer. These charges are in addition to those served upon Kennedy on March 18, for official misconduct and theft as mayor of the Borough of Ocean Gate, Billhimer said. The additional charges are the result of an extensive and ongoing investigation conducted by the Ocean County …
NJ: Elderly Siblings With 8th-Grade Educations Swindled In $500,000 Investment Scam NJ: Elderly Siblings With 8th-Grade Educations Swindled In $500,000 Investment Scam
NJ: Elderly Siblings With 8th-Grade Educations Swindled In $500,000 Investment Scam A former investment adviser swindled four elderly New Jersey customers out of $529,780 that he used for gambling, meals and car payments, state authorities said. Three of the victims conned by Mario E. Rivero, Jr. were elderly siblings who had eighth-grade educations, couldn't speak or read English and had "diminished capacity," Acting New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin said on Monday, March 14. Rivero -- who'd known the siblings for more than 10 years before becoming their financial professional -- told them and others that their money "would be invested in his mother's and fr…
NJ Scammer Admits Selling Bogus Tom Brady Super Bowl Rings NJ Scammer Admits Selling Bogus Tom Brady Super Bowl Rings
NJ Scammer Admits Selling Bogus Tom Brady Super Bowl Rings A 24-year-old New Jersey man pleaded guilty to fraud for pretending to be a New England Patriots player to buy and sell Super Bowl rings engraved with Tom Brady's last name, federal prosecutors said on Wednesday, Feb. 2. Scott V. Spina Jr., of Roseland, could face decades in prison when he's sentenced May 23, for charges of mail fraud, three counts of wire fraud, and one count of aggravated identity theft, authorities said. Spina's guilty plea comes one day after the quarterback announced his retirement after 22 seasons and seven Super Bowl titles. Spina ordered three replica Super Bo…
Contractor Used $75K Downpayment To Gamble In AC, Buy Boat, Bogus Rolex: Prosecutor Contractor Used $75K Downpayment To Gamble In AC, Buy Boat, Bogus Rolex: Prosecutor
Contractor Used $75K Downpayment To Gamble In AC, Buy Boat, Bogus Rolex: Prosecutor A 51-year-old contractor from South Jersey has been arrested for taking nearly $75,000 for a construction project then blowing it in Atlantic City, a new boat and a new car, authorities said. An investigation into Richard A. Smith Jr., of Williamstown, began in December 2021, after a Riverton resident told police that Smith, who owns Beyond Renovations LLC, took two payments for wok on an addition, Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina and Riverton Police Chief John Shaw said. Instead of doing the work, Smith used the money to visit Atlantic City casinos to play in a poker tournament, …