Toms River, New Jersey woman sentenced to prison for theft from St. Vincent De Paul

Despite a 57-year-old Toms River woman's failing health that necessitates constant use of an oxygen tank, she was sentenced Thursday to three years in prison for stealing more than $18,000 from charity. "She stole from the poor to give to the rich," Senior Assistant Ocean County Prosecutor Martin Anton said of Stephanie Iacopino before she was sentenced for the theft.
Iacopino, of Encinatas Drive, admitted in January that she stole more than $18,000 from the St. Vincent de Paul Society of the Church of St. Martha in Point Pleasant and gambled the money away in Atlantic City.
The St. Vincent de Paul Society is a charity that helps the poor.
Anton said she stole the money to fuel a gambling habit.
In fact, in apologizing to Superior Court Judge Francis R. Hodgson for the theft, Iacopino, who carried a portable oxygen tank with her, said she knew what she was doing was wrong when she placed the charity's ATM card into the cash machine at the Borgata casino in Atlantic City.
When she entered her guilty plea, Iacopino admitted that she stole the card from her husband, who at the time was the treasurer of the charity, and used it to make a series of withdrawals.
The thefts occurred between July of 2008 and April of 2009.
Iacopino was charged with second-degree theft, which carries a term of imprisonment from five to 10 years, as a result of an investigation by prosecutor's Detective James Conroy. She pleaded guilty to a downgraded charge of third-degree theft in a plea bargain that called for a four-year prison term.
Hodgson shaved a year off of that after the defendant's attorney, Vincent Falcetano, told the judge his client has suffered a series of strokes and has been hospitalized several times since she entered her plea. Falcetano told the judge Iacopino requires an oxygen machine 24 hours a day.
Hodgson said Iacopino could be a good candidate for the state Parole Board's Intensive Supervision Program, in which nonviolent offenders are released early from prison and placed under strict supervision. The judge ordered the defendant to make $18,305 in restitution to the charity from which she stole.

FBI Raid Home of Ocean County Toms River New Jersey Board of Education Superintendent Michael J Ritacco

Federal agents undertaking a public corruption investigation seized a Mercedes-Benz and carried away dozens of boxes today from the home and office of an Ocean County official who for decades has presided over one of New Jersey’s largest school districts. More than a dozen investigators from the FBI and the Internal Revenue Service arrived before 8 a.m. at the Seaside Park home of Michael J. Ritacco, longtime superintendent of the Toms River Regional Board of Education. They left several hours later after carting off unmarked boxes, driving away the car and photographing the three-story house and backyard pool, which lies one block from the beach.
Agents also executed raids at the school district’s administrative offices and at the home of a district employee.
FBI spokesman Bryan Travers confirmed the operations but declined to comment on the nature of the investigation. But a law enforcement official with knowledge of the case said it was corruption related. The official declined to be identified because he was not authorized to discuss the ongoing investigation.
Ritacco has not been charged with anything.
A spokeswoman for the district, Tammi Millar, said agents had executed a search warrant and delivered a subpoena requesting records.
“We are cooperating fully,” she said.
A spokeswoman for U.S. Attorney Paul J. Fishman declined to comment.
The raids came on the heels of heated statewide debates about school spending and two days after voters statewide rejected 58 percent of school budgets. Toms River’s $195 million budget was among the minority that passed. Investigators gave no indication today that the raids were in any way tied to the vote.
With more than 17,500 students and three high schools, Toms River is the fourth largest school district in the state.
Ritacco, who did not respond to messages left at his home today, has worked for the district for roughly 40 years. He became superintendent in 1991 and is something of a local icon.
The 62-year-old has a reputation as an ambitious and business-minded administrator who is a former chairman of the Toms River-Ocean County Chamber of Commerce. He is a vice president of the Toms River Police Foundation. And the district’s Ritacco Center — a 3,500-seat arena that opened in 2003 to host sporting events, concerts and trade shows — is named in his honor.
“He is certainly a well-know person, and he has been in that position a long time,” Toms River Mayor Thomas F. Kelaher said. “I’ve never heard an adverse thing about him.”
Ritacco also served on the education committee for Gov. Chris Christie’s transition team. After a news conference today at a beach club in Sea Bright to commemorate Earth Day, Christie said he knew nothing about the probe nor how it was tied to Ritacco.
“I hope he is not in trouble. If he is, he’s going to have to pay the price,” said Christie, who as U.S. attorney made a name for himself prosecuting public officials.
Also today, agents searched the Toms River home of Donna M. Mansfield, 42, who has worked for the district for 11 years and manages a cafe in the school administration building, according to public records and Millar, the spokeswoman. Attempts to contact Mansfield today were unsuccessful.
With a salary of $231,000, Ritacco is among New Jersey’s highest paid school superintendents. He is also superintendent of the Seaside Heights Borough School District and runs a business, MJ RIT, Inc. out of his home, according to a state financial disclosure form requiring him to list all sources of income in excess of $2,000.
The president of the Toms River Regional Board of Education, Betty Vasil, said she did not know what investigators were seeking, but she said the district had nothing to hide. She also defended Ritacco.
“The board has always had the utmost respect for Mr. Ritacco,” Vasil said. “Until we know more about the investigation, our confidence remains.”

Fellowship Chapel Point Pleasant NJ Money Meeting

For many of you who have attended Fellowship Chapel Point Pleasant NJ you would have noticed that after every Sunday service the pastors and elders would have an elder meeting. They would get together for what appeared to be a meeting to discuss issues regarding the church.

They couldn’t wait to get together as they would quickly congregate to a secluded area led by Fellowship Chapel vice president Richard Bergstrom and Brick Township lawyer from the Ocean County Prosecutor‘s Office Edward Murachanian.
They resembled little kids being let out for recess. For church members it made them proud that their church leaders were so passionate about serving God.
What the church members did not realize was what they believed to be a passion for serving God was actually a passion for serving their own greed, the con artist‘s love for money. At this pretend elder meeting Richard Bergstrom would divy up the cash that was collected from the Sunday offering and distribute it to Pastor Cliff Whitehead, Associated pastor Jim McCombs, President John Emmanuel, Secretary Bill Doolittle and Treasurer John Boyle.
The one thing in common with these men are that they are all long time friends of the secret owner of Fellowship Chapel of Jersey Shore lawyer Brick Township Edward Murachanian.

Plainfield, New Jersey Pastor Accused Of Defrauding Immigrants

He told them he was a messenger from God who could save them from deportation, but he turned out to be nothing more than a smooth-talking scam artist, his immigrant victims said.
Enoc Tito Sotelo, 50, a former pastor who ran a church for the Salvation Army in Plainfield, surrendered to authorities in Elizabeth today, a month after being indicted for defrauding immigrants of thousands of dollars with the false promise of green cards,
Sotelo now faces up to 70 years in prison, if convicted of 14 counts of theft by deception. The Peruvian native, who relocated from Plainfield to Kinston, N.C,, forfeited his U.S. passport and was released after posting $2,000 cash bail yesterday.
Hours later, several of his alleged victims revealed how they had been scammed. About 130 immigrants paid Sotelo between $4,000 to $9,000 each for green cards, said Flor Gonzalez, the Hispanic advocate in Plainfield who had advised them to go to police.
Today, only about a dozen people who dared to come forward gathered in Gonzalez’ office to tell their stories. The alleged victims hailed from Paraguay, Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador and Peru.
Ricardo Gil, 47, a Mexican who lives in North Plainfield, is a single father raising two sons, ages 12 and 16. He’s a maintenance man for a car dealership, and was desperate for a green card, he said. Sotelo told him he could get a special, achievement-based green card by saying he was a chef, Sotelo told him he knew an attorney in Florida who would fill out the application for him.
In exchange for Sotelo’s efforts, Gil gave the pastor his 1990 Nissan 240Z, a gold necklace, bracelet, ring and $4,200, of which $500 was supposed to go to an evangelical radio station that didn’t exist.
Gi said his fear of getting deported made him believe Sotelo was legitimate.
“We always have to hide,” Gil said. “When I’m in my house and hear a car pull up, and someone knocks…I’m afraid.”
Between June and December of 2005, Sotelo told the immigrants he would help them obtain green cards through a phony attorney named Oscar Ruiz, authorities said.
Sotelo traveled to Florida and met with Ruiz, who let him stay in his home overnight, bought him breakfast and gave him a Bible before they went to the immigration office, where Gil was fingerprinted.
It appears the phony attorney actually did apply on behalf of Gil and others, but failed to reveal the fee for such an application was about $150, not thousands. The receipts, apparently real and stamped with a faded image of the Statute of Liberty, were distributed to the applicants in Plainfield by a woman claiming to be the Florida attorney’s secretary.
The supposed secretary claimed she got her green card this way, Gil said. Soleto’s congregation grew exponentially after that.
He was charismatic, with a ready smile, able to convince a hard-working person to sign away their weekly paycheck, his victims said.
“He was a really nice guy, he would do favors for you,” Michael Lopez said. “He had the ability to convince people quickly. He would see you wearing a gold cross around your neck and say ‘Take it off, that’s of the devil.’”
Yesterday, Lopez held out his two cupped hands to demonstrate how much jewelry Sotelo had collected from the alleged victims after only a year’s time.
Lopez, 24, from Honduras, was here on a temporary work visa but didn’t renew it because he believed he would get a green card through Sotelo.
Victims said Sotelo told them some of the money he collected would go to the Salvation Army, which the organization has denied, said Union County Prosecutor Theodore Romankow. In a statement yesterday, Nancy Wellbrock, a development director for the New Jersey division of the Salvation Army who serves as a media spokesperson, declined to comment.
“We were not aware of his arrest and therefore we have no comment,” Wellbrock said of Sotelo, who she would not confirm was a Salvation Army employee.
One of Gil’s sisters, Maria, 44, also trusted Sotelo.
“If you have the hope, the dream of having something in this country, you believe,” she said.