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For Immediate Release:  
For Further Information:
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August 29, 2006  
Division of Criminal Justice
609- 984-1936

Office of The Attorney General
- Zulima V. Farber, Attorney General
Division of Criminal Justice
- Gregory A. Paw, Director

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NJ State Employee and Hospital Worker Among Eight People Charged Separately With Defrauding State Unemployment Program Out of More Than $116,300

 
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TRENTON – Attorney General Zulima V. Farber and Division of Criminal Justice Director Gregory A. Paw announced that a New Jersey state employee and a Robert Wood Johnson Hospital employee are among eight people who have been indicted in separate cases on charges of defrauding the Unemployment Insurance Benefits (UI) fund and Division of Workers’ Compensation out of a total of more than $116,300. The eight indictments resulted from cooperative investigations by the Department of Labor and Workforce Development and the Division of Criminal Justice - Major Financial Crimes Bureau.

"These indictments charge the defendants with illegally collecting thousands of dollars in benefits to which they were not entitled," Attorney General Farber said. "Our goal is to identify those who cheat the system, prosecute them and recover the money taken from the state treasury."

"The Department of Labor and Workforce Development uses a variety of methods to track those who would abuse the system and fraudulently obtain benefits," said Commissioner of Labor and Workforce Development David J. Socolow. "These cases were first identified by labor department investigators by cross-matching employer-submitted wage information against UI benefit payments; pursuing leads from employer protests of UI benefit charges; surveying employer payroll records; and responding to alerts from the staff of our local claims offices."

According to Director Paw, an Aug. 25 state grand jury indictment obtained by the Division of Criminal Justice - Labor Prosecutions Bureau charged Nancy R. Tyson, 42, of Trenton, with two counts of theft by deception and one count of unsworn falsification to authorities. Tyson allegedly failed to report to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development that she was employed by the State of New Jersey Division of Revenue while she was collecting on two UI benefits claims, one that she filed in November 2001 and another that she filed in December 2002. By not reporting the wages from the state job, Tyson allegedly received more than $10,700 in UI benefits to which she was not entitled.

The Division of Criminal Justice - Labor Prosecutions Bureau recently obtained seven other indictments:

  • Jeremiah Adams, 36, of Parlin, was charged in an Aug. 18 indictment with two counts of theft by deception and one count of unsworn falsification to authorities. The indictment charged that between September 2001 and February 2003, Adams worked at Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital while he was simultaneously collecting on two UI benefits claims. By not reporting these earnings to the labor department, Adams allegedly bilked the UI benefits program out of more than $24,600. indictment
  • Derrick Ladson, 38, of Paterson, was charged in an Aug. 18 indictment with four counts of theft by deception and one count of unsworn falsification to authorities for allegedly stealing more than $23,900 in UI benefits. The indictment charges that Ladson did not notify the labor department that he was employed by Drake Interstate Inc. at the same time that he was collecting on four UI benefits claims filed between April 2001 and Sept. 2005. indictment
  • Sharon Roberts, 41, of Newark,was charged in an Aug. 4 indictment with two counts of theft by deception and one count of unsworn falsification to authorities. Roberts filed for UI benefits in November 2000 and again in December 2001. Roberts allegedly was employed by Interstate Brand Corp. in Wayne at the same time that she was collecting on the claims. As a result, Roberts fraudulently collected more than $14,100 in UI benefits, the indictment alleges. indictment
  • Iva White, 50, of Vaux Hall, was charged in an Aug.
    24 indictment with theft by deception and unsworn falsification to authorities. White filed for UI benefits in March 2001 and collected on the claim until August of that year. The indictment alleges that White failed to report to the labor department that she was employed during that time as a medical biller by Associates in Primary Care in Milburn. As a result, White allegedly defrauded the UI benefits program of more than $11,100. indictment
  • V.W. Smith, 58, of Rahway, was charged in an Aug. 24 indictment with two counts of theft by deception and one count of unsworn falsification. Smith filed for UI benefits in December 2000 and again in January 2002. An investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice - Labor Prosecutions Bureau determined that Smith was employed by Island Scrap Metal Co. in Perth Amboy while collecting on each of these claims. By not reporting this employment to the labor department, Smith received more than $10,900 in UI benefits to which he was not entitled, according to the indictment. indictment
  • Hugo Olarte, 46 of Wayne, was charged in an Aug. 4 indictment with theft by deception and unsworn falsification to authorities. The indictment alleges that between May and September 2001, Olarte was employed as an anesthesia technician by Bolton Medical Inc. in Fair Lawn. An investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice determined that during this time, Olarte collected more than $9,800 on a UI benefits claim without notifying the labor department of his employment. indictment

Theft by deception is a third-degree crime which carries a sentence of up to five years in state prison and a fine of up to $15,000. Unsworn falsification to authorities is a fourth-degree crime which carries a sentence of up to 18 months in state prison and a fine of up to $10,000. The indictments are merely accusations and the defendants are presumed innocent until proven guilty.

Deputy Attorney General Candy Cure presented the Tyson case to the grand jury. DAG Erin Callahan presented the Adams, Ladson, Roberts, White and Olarte cases to the grand jury. DAG Patrick Flor presented the Lee and Smith cases to the grand jury. State Investigators Gary O’Brien and Lynn Patrick Fitzgerald coordinated the investigations.

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