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TRENTON
– Attorney General Paula T. Dow and
Criminal Justice Director Stephen J. Taylor
announced that former New Jersey Assemblyman
Anthony Chiappone was sentenced today for
filing false reports with the New Jersey
Election Law Enforcement Commission (ELEC).
According
to Director Taylor, Chiappone, 52, of Bayonne,
who formerly represented the 31st Legislative
District in the New Jersey General Assembly,
was sentenced to one year of probation and
fined $5,000 by Superior Court Judge Gerald
J. Council in Mercer County. Chiappone pleaded
guilty on June 25 to a third-degree charge
of tampering with public records or information.
As a result of the guilty plea, Chiappone
was required to forfeit his seat in the
Assembly and is permanently barred from
holding public office in New Jersey.
In
pleading guilty, Chiappone admitted that
he completed and certified the campaign
contribution and expenditure reports filed
with ELEC for the 2005 Chiappone for Assembly
campaign, knowing that they were false because
they failed to report five state-issued
paychecks for a legislative aide totaling
$3,233.64 that were deposited into the campaign
account. He falsely certified that contributions
to the campaign did not exceed ELEC limits,
even though the total of the aide’s
checks exceeded the limit of $2,600 for
contributions from a single individual.
Deputy Attorney General Susan Kase prosecuted
the case for the Division of Criminal Justice
Corruption Bureau and represented the state
at the sentencing hearing.
“Mr.
Chiappone broke the law, as well as the
oath he took as a state assemblyman to honestly
serve the people of New Jersey,” said
Attorney General Dow. “As a result
of our prosecution, he will never again
hold public office in New Jersey.”
“The
Division of Criminal Justice will continue
to aggressively investigate and prosecute
corruption by government officials so as
to safeguard the public interest,”
said Director Taylor. “We urge citizens
to report suspected misconduct to us.”
Chiappone
was charged in an Aug. 26, 2009 state grand
jury indictment, which also named his wife,
Diane. The charges against her were dismissed
based on his plea.
The
investigation was led by Deputy Attorney
General Kase, Detective Melissa Calkin and
Sgt. Joseph Caloiaro of the Division of
Criminal Justice Corruption Bureau.
Chiappone
was first elected to the Assembly in 2003.
He lost the Democratic primary in June 2005,
but was elected to the Assembly again in
November 2007. He was re-elected in November
2009. He also served as a city councilman
for Bayonne from 1998 to 2009.
Director
Taylor noted that the Division of Criminal
Justice Corruption Bureau has established
a toll-free Corruption Tipline 1-866-TIPS-4CJ.
The public can also log on to the Division’s
Web site www.njdcj.org
to confidentially report suspected wrongdoing.
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