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TRENTON
– Attorney General Anne Milgram and
Criminal Justice Director Gregory A. Paw
announced today that five people have been
charged in separate indictments with stealing
a total of more than $77,000 from New Jersey’s
unemployment insurance trust fund.
The
indictments resulted from cooperative investigations
by the Department of Labor and Workforce
Development and the Division of Criminal
Justice - Major Crimes Bureau.
“These
indictments charge the defendants with illegally
collecting thousands of dollars in benefits
to which they were not entitled,”
Attorney General Milgram said. “Our
goal is to identify those who cheat the
system, prosecute them and recover the money
taken from the state’s unemployment
insurance trust fund.”
“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 concerned
citizens.”
According
to Director Paw, the Division of Criminal
Justice - Major Crimes Bureau obtained the
following state grand jury indictments on
Nov. 7:
- State
v. Robert P. Hay Hay, 39, of
Piscataway, was charged with two counts
of third-degree theft by deception and
one count of fourth-degree unsworn falsification.
The indictment alleges that, after filing
for UI benefits in March 2002, Hay was
employed by J. Seranza Brickwork Inc.
in Whitehouse Station; Prismatic Development
Corp. in Fairfield; Rocket Construction
in Jersey City and Railroad Construction
in Paterson. It is further charged that,
while collecting on a March 2003 claim,
Hay earned wages from Cobra Construction
in New Brunswick. By not reporting the
earnings to the labor department, Hay
allegedly stole $26,840 from the state
fund.
- State
v. Shanda R. Dorsey Dorsey, 35,
of East Orange, was charged with third-degree
theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn
falsification for allegedly stealing $17,212
from the UI fund. According to the indictment,
Dorsey filed for UI benefits in January
2003 and subsequently earned wages from
Skillman Salad I, LLC, T/A Saladworks.
The indictment charges that Dorsey failed
to notify the labor department of the
earnings.
- State
v. Joseph A. Pipitone Pipitone,
37, of Bradley Beach, was charged with
third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree
unsworn falsification. The indictment
alleges that, while collecting on a February
2002 UI benefits claim, Pipitone was employed
as a cook by Meristar Management Co. LLC
d/b/a The Holiday Inn, Eatontown, and
White Truffles Café LLC, d/b/a
The Meritage Restaurant in Wall Township.
It is charged that, by not reporting his
earnings to the labor department, Pipitone
defrauded the state fund out of $12,936.
- State
v. Lori Norfleet Norfleet, 38,
of Newark, was charged with third-degree
theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn
falsification for allegedly stealing $12,157
in UI benefits. Norfleet filed four separate
UI benefits claims in 2002, 2004, 2005
and 2006. The indictment alleges that
after filing these claims, Norfleet was
employed as a customer service representative
at Shore Vans Inc. in Hillside. It is
charged that Norfleet did not notify the
labor department of this employment.
On
Oct. 24, the Division of Criminal Justice
- Major Crimes Bureau obtained a state grand
jury indictment charging Michael
Bonyoczeczky, 62, of Toms River,
with third-degree theft by deception and
fourth-degree unsworn falsification. Bonyoczeckzky
filed for UI benefits in January 2003. The
indictment alleges that between February
and October 2003, Bonyoczeczky, was employed
by Wentworth Group. The indictment further
charges that, as a result of failing to
notify the labor department of the earnings,
Bonyoczeczky stole $8,155 from the state
fund.
>>
Indictments
(531k pdf) plug-in
The indictments are merely accusations and
the defendants are presumed innocent until
proven guilty. Third-degree crimes carry
a sentence of up to five years in state
prison and a fine of up to $15,000, while
fourth-degree crimes carry a sentence of
up to 18 months in state prison and a fine
of up to $10,000.
State
Investigators Gary O’Brien and Lynn
Fitzgerald coordinated the investigations.
The cases were presented to the state grand
jury by Deputy Attorneys General Valerie
Noto, Jessica Oppenheim and Mark Kurzawa.
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