TRENTON
– Division of Criminal Justice Director
Vaughn L. McKoy announced that the Major
Financial Crimes Bureau has charged two
Monmouth County residents with illegally
collecting more than $44,800 in Unemployment
Insurance (UI) benefits. The prosecutions
result from a cooperative investigative
effort by the Department of Labor and
Workforce Development (DLWD) and the Division
of Criminal Justice.
According
to Director McKoy, the Division of Criminal
Justice - Major Financial Crimes Bureau
obtained separate State Grand Jury indictments
charging two Monmouth County residents
with theft by deception and unsworn falsification
to authorities for bilking the New Jersey
UI benefits program out of more than $44,800.
"The
Division of Criminal Justice and the Department
of Labor and Workforce Development have
established investigative protocols which
target deliberate and blatant attempts
by individuals who attempt to steal thousands
of dollars from the state unemployment
fund," said Criminal Justice Director
McKoy. “Make no mistake, we intend
to investigate, prosecute, recoup and
return dollars stolen from our unemployment
compensation programs."
"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 Unemployment
Insurance Director David Socolow. "These
cases were first identified by DLWD 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."
A
June 30 indictment charged Edward Perkinson,
45, Williamson Avenue, Hillside, with
three counts of theft by deception and
one count of unsworn falsification to
authorities for allegedly collecting more
than $25,000 in UI benefits to which he
was not entitled. Perkinson filed three
separate UI benefits claims - in December
1999, and then again in June of 2001 and
2002. While collecting on each of the
claims, Perkinson allegedly worked as
a laborer for several construction companies,
but did not report any of the earnings
to DLWD.
During
the first claim, Perkinson was employed
Structural Concepts in Ocean, Monmouth
County and earned wages sporadically between
December 1999 and April 2000. An investigation
by the Division of Criminal Justice determined
that on the same claim, Perkinson also
worked for Integrated Construction in
Belleville, Essex County during March
and April 2000. It is charged that from
July to August of that year, Perkinson
worked at National Construction located
in Frazer, PA.
The
investigation further revealed that Perkinson
was employed by Sloan & Co., West
Caldwell, Essex County, from July through
October 2001, while he was collecting
on his second claim. During August 2001,
Perkinson also earned wages from Epix
in Woodbridge, Middlesex County.
After
filing the third claim in June 2002, Perkinson
again began working at Sloan & Co.,
this time from July to October 2002 and
then intermittently between November 2002
and February 2003.
A
second June 30 indictment charged Charles
Burke, 41, US Highway 9, Howell, with
two counts of theft by deception and one
count of unsworn falsification to authorities
for bilking the UI benefits program out
of more than $19,600. Burke filed for
and collected on two separate UI benefits
claims - January 2000 and December 2002.
While collecting on both claims, Burke
was allegedly employed as a landscaper
by American Lawn Sprinkler Co., Inc. in
Morganville, Monmouth County, but failed
to report the earnings to DLWD.
Deputy
Attorney General Candy Cure presented
both cases to the State Grand Jury. Both
cases have been assigned to Monmouth County.
Theft by deception is a third degree crime
which carries a maximum penalty of up
to five years in state prison and a fine
of up to $15,000, while unsworn falsification
to authorities is a fourth degree crime
which calls for up to 18 months in state
prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
A
copy of this release and the related indictments
can be found at www.njdcj.org.
An
indictment is merely an accusation. The
defendants are presumed innocent until
proven guilty in a court of law.