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For Immediate Release:  
For Further Information:
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August 26, 2009  

Peter Aseltine
609-292-4791

Office of The Attorney General
- Anne Milgram, Attorney General
Division of Criminal Justice
- Deborah L. Gramiccioni, Director

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Assemblyman Anthony Chiappone and His Wife Charged with Official Misconduct for Funneling $8,000 in State Paychecks for Legislative Aides into Personal Accounts and Campaign

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TRENTON – Attorney General Anne Milgram announced that New Jersey Assemblyman Anthony Chiappone and his wife were indicted today on charges they conspired to funnel more than $8,000 in state-issued paychecks for a legislative aide and a purported aide into their own personal bank accounts and Chiappone’s 2005 Assembly campaign.

They allegedly had $7,532 in paychecks issued to one legislative aide, who donated all of his checks to the campaign. The defendants allegedly diverted $4,299 of those checks into their bank accounts for personal use, as well as a $629 paycheck issued to a woman they claimed was another legislative aide.

While the remaining checks from the male aide did get deposited into the campaign’s bank account, the defendants allegedly failed to include those contributions in reports filed with the New Jersey Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC). Chiappone, who was first elected to the Assembly in 2003, lost the Democratic primary in June 2005, but was elected to the Assembly again in November 2007. He is running for re-election in November.

“We charge that Assemblyman Chiappone and his wife conspired to have the state issue more than $8,000 in paychecks for legislative aides, knowing that the money was really destined for the couple's own pockets or his re-election campaign,” said Attorney General Milgram. “This indictment chronicles a betrayal of the public trust by this elected official.”

According to Criminal Justice Director Deborah L. Gramiccioni, Assemblyman Chiappone, 51, of Bayonne, who represents the 31st Legislative District, and his wife, Diane Chiappone, 54, were charged in a seven-count state grand jury indictment with conspiracy (2nd degree), two counts of official misconduct (2nd degree), theft by deception (3rd degree), tampering with public records or information (3rd degree), falsifying or tampering with records (4th degree), and concealment or misrepresentation of contributions or expenditures (4th degree).

The charges stem from an investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Corruption Bureau.

The indictment alleges that in 2005, Anthony and Diane Chiappone conspired to have 13 state paychecks totaling $7,532.96 issued to a man who was a legislative aide to Assemblyman Chiappone, knowing that the checks would actually be deposited into the personal bank accounts of the couple or the 2005 Chiappone for Assembly campaign account.

The aide, who is not named in the indictment, donated all of the paychecks he received to the 2005 Chiappone for Assembly campaign. However, instead of depositing all of the checks into the campaign’s bank account, Anthony and Diane Chiappone allegedly deposited eight of the checks totaling $4,299.32 into their own bank accounts for their personal use.

The defendants did deposit the other five paychecks totaling 3,233.64 into the 2005 Chiappone for Assembly campaign account. However, those checks were not reported in the campaign contribution and expenditure reports they filed with ELEC. Moreover, it is alleged the defendants falsely certified that contributions to the campaign did not exceed ELEC limits, even though the aide’s checks exceeded the limit of $2,600 for contributions from a single individual.

The indictment further alleges that in April 2004, Anthony and Diane Chiappone conspired to have a state paycheck in the amount of $629.47 issued to a woman who they claimed was a legislative aide to Chiappone. In fact, the woman, who is not named in the indictment, did not work as his aide. The woman endorsed the check, and the defendants allegedly deposited it into their own joint bank account.

“This investigation started with a lead from a member of the public, which was diligently pursued by our detectives,” said Director Gramiccioni. “We will continue to thoroughly investigate all allegations of official corruption and aggressively prosecute those found to have broken the law. We encourage anyone with information about suspected wrongdoing to call our confidential tip line at 1-866-TIPS-4CJ.”

The investigation was led by Deputy Attorney General Susan Kase, Detective Melissa Calkin and Sgt. Joseph Caloiaro of the Division of Criminal Justice Corruption Bureau. Deputy Attorney General Kase presented the matter to the state grand jury.

Second-degree crimes carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in state prison and a $150,000 fine, while third-degree crimes carry a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a $15,000 fine. Fourth-degree crimes carry a maximum sentence of 18 months in prison and a $10,000 fine.

The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

The indictment was handed up to Superior Court Judge Pedro J. Jimenez Jr. in Mercer County, who assigned the case to Mercer County, where the defendants will be ordered to appear in court at a later date to answer the charges.

A copy of the indictment is linked to this release at www.njpublicsafety.com.

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