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TRENTON
- Attorney General Anne Milgram and Criminal
Justice Director Gregory A. Paw announced
that a Linden woman has been indicted on
charges that she stole more than $9,400
in disability insurance benefits by fraudulently
claiming she was unable to work.
According
to Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Greta Gooden
Brown, Denise M. Muhammad, 44, of Linden,
was charged with two counts of second-degree
insurance fraud, three-counts of third degree
theft by deception, and two counts of fourth-degree
falsifying or tampering with records. The
indictment was handed up late yesterday
in Superior Court in Mercer County.
Muhammad
was a state employee who worked as a human
services assistant at the Woodbridge Developmental
Center. The Mercer County grand jury indictment
alleges that between July 2002 and July
2004, Muhammad committed insurance fraud
and stole disability insurance benefits.
Specifically, it is alleged that Muhammad
made false statements concerning her health
and her physical ability to work in order
to avoid going to work and instead collect
disability benefits. She resigned from the
job in July 2005 after being confronted
over the alleged fraud.
It is alleged that Muhammad knowingly submitted
false disability insurance certifications
and medical certificates. In addition, Muhammad
allegedly submitted false disability insurance
claims for periods beginning July 27, 2002,
September 5, 2003, and March 18, 2004. As
a result, Muhammad allegedly stole $9,472
in disability insurance benefits.
State Investigator Abraham A. Aquino and
Deputy Attorney General Cheryl A. Maccaroni
coordinated the investigation. Maccaroni
presented the case to the Mercer County
grand jury.
The
indictment is merely an accusation and the
defendant is presumed innocent until proven
guilty. Second-degree crimes carry a maximum
punishment of 10 years in state prison and
a criminal fine of $150,000, while crimes
of the third degree carry a maximum punishment
of five years in state prison and a criminal
fine of $15,000. Crimes of the fourth degree
carry a maximum punishment of 18 months
in state prison and a criminal fine of $10,000.
The
Office of Insurance Fraud Prosecutor was
established by the Automobile Insurance
Cost Reduction Act of 1998. The office is
the centralized state agency that investigates
and prosecutes both civil and criminal insurance
fraud, as well as Medicaid fraud.
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