White Collar Crime News

Five indicted for defrauding unemployment December 12, 2008

What do you get when we have record unemployment?  Unemployment fraud!  Seems that there is a lot of it lately as five people have been indicted over the past month.  All five have one thing in common, they are all charged with stealing at least $10,000.  I assume the State has some type of cut off as to what they consider criminal.  Even though only $500 is needed for a third degree crime, anyone can make a mistake by collecting an extra check, or two, or three.  However, its tough to collect $10,000+ while you are working somewhere else and not know that it is wrong. 

I’m sure this happens much more often, but those will smaller amounts are contacted first and a payment plan is worked out to avoid charges.

The other interesting thing to note here is that all of these UI claims are from several years ago; as opposed to recent claims.  So, you’ll probably have to give it a few years for anyone on unemployment now to get charged.

State v. Lamar Douglas. Douglas, 33, whose mailing address is listed in Hackensack, was charged with third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn falsification for allegedly stealing $22,343 in UI benefits. Douglas filed for UI benefits in June 2002 and again in June 2003. Subsequent to filing each claim, Douglas allegedly earned wages from McNally Brothers Moving and Storage, located in Wallington. The indictment charges that Douglas failed to notify the Department of Labor and Workforce Development of the earnings.

State v. Margarita E. Gonzalez. Gonzalez, 36, of Jersey City was charged with third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn falsification. According to the indictment, Gonzalez worked at Wet Seal Retail in the Livingston Mall while collecting on a March 2003 UI benefits claim. It is charged that Gonzales did not report her earnings to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, and consequently stole $15,840 in UI benefits.

State v. Nathaniel Thompson. Thompson, 58, of Elizabeth, was charged in a Nov. 7 indictment with third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn falsification. According to the indictment, Thompson allegedly stole $32,136 in UI benefits. Thompson filed for UI benefits in January 2000, March 2001, March 2002 and June 2003. The indictment charges that after filing each claim, Thompson was employed doing installation for various contractors. Thompson allegedly failed to notify the Department of Labor and Workforce Development of his earnings.

State v. Gary Williams. Williams, 48, of Paterson, was charged in a Nov. 7 indictment with third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn falsification for allegedly stealing $20,395 in UI benefits. The indictment charges that, after filing for UI benefits in April 2002 and April 2003, Williams worked for Reputable Contract Installations, Inc., located in Yonkers, NY. The indictment further charges that Williams failed to notify the Department of Labor and Workforce Development of his earnings.

State v. Lorenzo White. White, 37, formerly of North Brunswick, was charged in a Nov. 19 indictment with third-degree theft by deception and fourth-degree unsworn falsification. According to the indictment, White allegedly worked for Dr. Leonard’s Healthcare Corporation in Edison while he was collecting on a June 2003 UI benefits claims. The indictment alleges that, by not reporting his wages to the Department of Labor and Workforce Development, White received $10,982 in UI benefits to which he was not entitled.