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Trenton Lead Inspectors Admit Inflating Overtime Pay: Feds

Two Trenton lead inspectors admitted that they received nearly $55,000 in illegal overtime pay from the city for hours they did not work, federal authorities said.

A faucet

A faucet

Photo Credit: Rudy and Peter Skitterians on Pixabay

Michael Ingram, 71, of Trenton, and William Kreiss, 40, of Yardley, PA, pleaded guilty in Trenton federal court to conspiracy to embezzle, steal, and obtain by fraud from the city of Trenton, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office.

Trenton’s Department of Health and Human Services was required to provide services to identify lead sources in homes in Trenton where children had tested positive for elevated levels of lead in their blood. Trenton’s Bureau of Environmental Health, a subdivision of Trenton HHS, was responsible for performing these residential lead inspections.

Ingram, a public health investigator for the Bureau of Environmental Health, and Kreiss, a registered environmental specialist for the bureau, conducted residential lead inspections from February 2018 through May 2022, federal prosecutors said in a news release.

The pair admitted submitting claims for overtime work they did not perform and also said they had inflated claims for overtime hours worked in connection with a meal delivery program administered by the city, the U.S. Attorney’s office said.

Ingram admitted he received $22,144 in overtime payments to which he was not entitled, while Kreiss admitted he received $32,806 in phony overtime payments to which he was not entitled, prosecutors said.

They are scheduled to be sentenced on April 24, 2024.

Each faces a maximum penalty of five years in prison and a maximum fine of $250,000.

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