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TRENTON
– Attorney General Stuart Rabner and
Criminal Justice Director Gregory A. Paw
announced today that complaints were filed
against Clayton Borough Police Chief Frank
Winters and his wife Bernice Winters for
allegedly stealing $150,000 from Mothers
Against Drunk Driving. Their alleged fraudulent
scheme involved a company they owned which
was paid to produce promotional items for
MADD, but did not.
The
Attorney General said Gloucester County
Prosecutor Sean Dalton has taken over supervision
of the day to day operations of the Clayton
Borough Police Department.
Winters,
60, and his wife, 56, were served today
with a two-count complaint charging them
with conspiracy and theft by deception,
which are both second-degree crimes. Second-degree
crimes carry a sentence of up to 10 years
in prison and a fine of up to $150,000.
The Winters, who live in Newfield where
Frank Winters is a councilman, are both
former leaders of MADD at the state and
local level. The Winters are both former
chairmen of the New Jersey state chapter
of MADD. Chief Winters was also a member
of the national board of directors. The
state charges that Chief Winters’
prominent position allowed him to further
the conspiracy and theft.
“The
alleged scheme is shocking on a number of
levels,’’ Rabner said. “Mothers
Against Drunk Driving is a hard-working,
grassroots organization founded more than
25 years ago to combat drunk driving and
underage drinking. Ripping off donations
to MADD, which were intended to make our
streets and highways safer, is unconscionable.’’
“MADD’s
money was used to line the Winters’
personal pockets instead of funding programs
to promote crucial public safety campaigns,’’
the Attorney General added.
“The
head of any police agency bears even greater
responsibility to uphold the public trust
than his or her sworn members. It’s
rare but tragic when someone in this position
lets the public down in such a profound
way,” said Colonel Rick Fuentes, Superintendent
of the New Jersey State Police.
“It is deeply disturbing that a police
chief has been charged with stealing from
a charity,’’ said Director Paw.
“The Chief and his wife are alleged
to have betrayed the trust placed in them
as officers of MADD by allegedly engaging
in this criminal scheme.’’
According
to the complaint, the Winters were charged
with conspiracy and theft by deception for
funneling money raised by MADD to Holiday
House, a purported company they owned, which
produced promotional items like pens and
key chains. But no promotional items were
ever ordered or delivered to local MADD
chapters in New Jersey, the complaint states.
The Winters made efforts to keep their ownership
interest in the company, hidden from others,
the complaint charges. The state alleges
that the Winters appeared to place orders
on behalf of MADD to Holiday House for promotional
items for local chapters, but in reality
the items were not distributed.
Chief Winters, as a state officer for MADD,
approved the MADD check request forms for
the false and fictitious orders, the complaint
charges.
The state charges the Winters treated the
money from MADD which was received by Holiday
House as their own, deposited money into
their personal bank account and used it
to pay for their own personal items and
personal debts, such as their mortgage,
car payments, and dinners. The scheme allegedly
took place for nearly three years, from
July 2001 to March 2004.
Attorney General Rabner credited State Police
Det. Sgt. Glenn Pender and Lt. Miguel Cartagena
in the Major Crimes Unit for leading the
investigation. Deputy Attorney General Jill
Mayer is handling the case for the Attorney
General and the Division of Criminal Justice.
The charges are merely accusations and the
defendants are presumed innocent until proven
guilty. The Winters are scheduled to answer
the complaints filed against them May 1
in Newfield Borough Municipal Court.
The Division of Criminal Justice - Special
Prosecutions Bureau has established a toll-free
Corruption Tipline for the public to report
corruption, financial crime and other illegal
activities. The statewide Corruption Tipline
is 1-866-TIPS-4CJ. Additionally,
the public can log on to the Division of
Criminal Justice Web site at www.njdcj.org
to report suspected wrongdoing. All information
received through the Division of Criminal
Justice Corruption Tipline or Web page will
remain confidential.
MADD
is a non-profit organization which was founded
in 1980 in California by mothers whose children
were killed by drunk drivers. There are
approximately 600 affiliates nationwide.
There are eight chapters in New Jersey.
MADD is a major organization in lobbying
for tougher anti-drunk driving laws, including
the national legislation which raised the
drinking age to 21 and decreased the drunk
driving limit to .08 percent blood alcohol
concentration.
Nearly
17,000 people are killed each year and about
500,000 seriously injured in alcohol- related
traffic crashes, according to national statistics.
In New Jersey, approximately one third of
all traffic fatalities are alcohol related.
In 2005, the last year in which statistics
are available, 252 people were killed in
alcohol-related traffic accidents, according
to the Division of Highway Traffic Safety.
That represented 34 percent of all traffic
fatalities that year. In 2004, 224 people
died in alcohol-related traffic accidents,
representing 31 percent of the total killed.
>>
MADD
Complaint (471k pdf) plug-in
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