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TRENTON - Attorney General
Anne Milgram and Criminal Justice Director
Deborah L. Gramiccioni announced that a Camden
County man has pleaded guilty to insurance
fraud for attempting to steal more than $68,000
in Personal Injury Protection (PIP) benefits.
According to Insurance Fraud
Prosecutor Greta Gooden Brown, Vito Manzella,
24, whose last known address was in Lindenwold,
pleaded guilty yesterday before Superior Court
Judge Christine Allen-Jackson in Gloucester
County to third-degree insurance fraud, a
charge contained in a February 2008 indictment.
Under the plea agreement, the state will recommend
a sentence of 180 days in the county jail
as a condition of two years probation. Manzella
also must pay restitution in the amount of
$3,241 to New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance
Company for the cost of investigating the
fraudulent claims. Judge Allen-Jackson scheduled
sentencing for April 24.
In pleading guilty, Manzella admitted that
between March 28 and May 2, 2005, he committed
insurance fraud by fraudulently submitting
claims for $68,819 in PIP benefits to New
Jersey Indemnity Insurance Company. Manzella
admitted that following an automobile accident
in Berlin Borough, he falsified an affidavit
stating that he lived in Mullica Hill at the
time of the accident with a family member
who had automobile insurance. Manzella admitted
that, in fact, he did not live in Mullica
Hill at the time. He lived in Camden County
with a family member who did not have automobile
insurance. PIP benefits provide coverage for
medical bills, lost wages, and essential services
for persons who are injured in automobile
accidents. These benefits are provided to
persons who have the appropriate automobile
insurance or who reside in a house in which
the residents are licensed drivers and have
the appropriate automobile insurance.
Detective Christina Fiscella,
Civil Investigator William McGough, and Deputy
Attorney General Paul Santangini were assigned
to the investigation. Santangini represented
the Office of the Insurance Fraud Prosecutor
at the guilty plea hearing. This case was
referred to OIFP by the Special Investigative
Unit of the New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance
Group, which initially uncovered the fraud
and assisted OIFP in the investigation. Insurance
Fraud Prosecutor Brown thanked the New Jersey
Indemnity Insurance Company of the New Jersey
Manufacturers Insurance Group for its assistance
in this matter.
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