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Mayor Of Jersey Shore Town Pocketed Parking Meter Money, Sold Borough Furniture: Prosecutor

A mayor from a Jersey Shore town has been charged with official misconduct and theft for pocketing parking meter money and selling borough furniture, authorities said.

Ocean Gate Mayor Paul Kennedy

Ocean Gate Mayor Paul Kennedy

Photo Credit: Ocean County Prosecutor's Office

Authorities did not detail the value of the cash and other proceeds allegedly stolen by Paul Kennedy, 66, who serves as the mayor of Ocean Gate.

These charges are the result of an extensive investigation conducted by the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Professional Standards/Corruption Unit and Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office Economic Crime Squad, according to Prosecutor Bradley D. Billhimer.

The investigation revealed that Kennedy, in his capacity as mayor of the Borough of Ocean Gate, failed to turn over proceeds from the sale of borough assets — sold by way of the government auction website GovDeals.com — and instead took possession of those proceeds for his own personal benefit, Billhimer said.

The investigation further revealed that Kennedy failed to deposit borough parking meter funds in the borough’s bank account and that he sold borough office furniture through a private Facebook Marketplace account, attempting to keep the proceeds for his personal benefit, the prosecutor said.

Kennedy was processed at the Ocean County Sheriff’s Office, and released on a summons pending a future court date.

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