Tag: New Jersey Attorney General
$3 Million Fraud: East Orange Man Stole From Medicaid: AG
A 63-year-old East Orange man was arrested and charged with stealing more than $3 million from Medicaid by filing false claims, authorities announced Tuesday, Sept. 23.
Vicente Lopez ran a psychological counseling service to Medicaid beneficiaries, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. After Joyce Lopez, Vicente’s sister, died in 2021, he took sole control of the company, Platkin said.
Lopez billed or directed his employees to bill Medicaid for psychological services for over 34,000 individual claims and received approximately $3.4 million from Medicaid, despite that neither he,…
Republican Branchville, Frankford Commissioner Faked Military Status For Tax Break: AG
A sitting Sussex County Commissioner has been indicted for falsely claiming a veteran’s exemption on a New Jersey tax return, officials said.
William "Bill" Hayden, 58, of Frankford Township, was charged with one count of filing a fraudulent tax return (3rd degree), according to an announcement made by New Jersey Attorney General Matthew J. Platkin and the Division of Criminal Justice (DCJ) on Tuesday, July 15.
Hayden, who was elected to the Sussex County Board of Commissioners on Nov. 8, 2022, is also employed as a Region North Permit Supervisor with the New Jersey Department of Trans…
Family Feared Him Missing — He Was Arrested In Child Sex Sting At Bordentown Hotel, AG Says
All Bruce Drelich's family knew on Friday, May 2 was that he'd gone to New Jersey to meet an "online acquaintance" before he disappeared, according to a missing person's post on social media.
And then, they learned why.
The Philadelphia resident is facing multiple charges, including human trafficking, after authorities say he tried to meet a 12-year-old girl in a Bordentown, NJ hotel for sex. That girl was actually an undercover agent, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said on Tuesday, June 10.
So, on May 2, when Drehlich arrived at the hotel, he was taken into custody by authori…
Browns Mills Man Thought He'd Get Sex With 12-Year-Old — Then He Was Arrested: AG
A 36-year-old Brown Mills man was charged on Friday, June 6, after he tried to arrange sex with a 12-year-old girl, authorities said.
On Monday, April 7, a police officer officer posing as the mother of a 12-year-old girl was contacted on a dating app by Lockwood, and they began exchanging messages, Platkin said.
Lockwood told the "woman" he was into taboo sex, saying, "Daddy daughter is my favorite. Uncle niece fun too."
When the undercover officer told Lockwood her daughter was 12 years old, Lockwood requested pictures, Platkin said.
Over the next month, Lockwood repeatedly asked to mee…
Two People Tried to Get Bribe From Union Township Business Owner: AG
Two people were charged on Thursday, June 5, with trying to get a bribe from a Union Township business owner, claiming a personal connection with an official in the township, authorities said.
Steven Carr, a 54-year-old Staten Island resident, and Whitney DaSilva, a 38-year-old Kearny resident face charges of bribery and conspiracy, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said. Carr also faces charges of theft by deception, Platkin said.
Between February and May 2024, the owner of a Union Township business was involved in administrative proceedings with the township related to his estab…
Former Family Services Caseworker, Kearny Resident, Who Possessed Child Porn Learns Fate: Feds
A 58-year-old Kearny resident was sentenced to more than nine years in prison on Thursday, May 22, after pleading guilty to possessing and transporting child pornography, authorities said.
Trent Collier previously worked as a caseworker for the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, Division of Child Protection and Permanency, U.S. Attorney Alina Habba said.
In September 2021, Collier arrived at Newark Liberty International Airport on a flight from the Dominican Republic, Habba said. Upon arrival, law enforcement searched Collier’s cellular phone and identified at least two images …
Paterson Council President, Campaign Team Stole, Forged Ballots To Win 2020 Election: NJ AG
A New Jersey city council president rigged the vote to keep his seat — and now he’s facing a fresh round of felony charges, state officials say.
Alex Mendez, the Paterson City Council President, is facing new election fraud charges alongside his wife and three others, including campaign workers, after allegedly stealing and forging ballots to win a municipal election in May 2020, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin announced Wednesday, April 30.
According to a 10-count superseding indictment, Mendez and his co-conspirators are accused of forging ballots and voter registrations and s…
Newark Bloods Leader Ordered Shootings, Ran Open-Air Drug Market, 26 Charged: AG
The leader of the Queen Street Blood Gang and 25 other people have been arrested for their roles in an enterprise that used violence and intimidation to operate an open-air drug market in Newark, authorities said.
New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin made the announcement at a press conference on Tuesday, April 22.
Rabiyah Sorey, the leader of the gang is charged with racketeering, conspiracy, weapons offenses, assaults and drug offenses, Platkin said. Other members charged in the conspiracy acted as supervisors, advisors, distributors of controlled dangerous substances and enfo…
Ghost Guns, Meth, Firearm Seized From Pair In Ocean County Raid: AG
Two Ocean County residents are facing charges following a raid on Wednesday, Feb. 19 that turned up numerous ghost guns and methamphetamine, authorities said.
Law enforcement conducted search warrants at multiple locations and recovered and seized, guns, including guns with no serial number- "ghost guns," extended magazines, and a quantity of methamphetamine, New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin said.
The defendants, George Garulle, 56, of Beachwood, and Dana Restaino, 39, of Whiting, conspired to sell a defaced firearm with no serial number, Platkin said.
They were charge…
