Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal announced that a man who worked at a state-operated housing recovery center in Newark after Superstorm Sandy has been indicted on charges that he demanded thousands of dollars in bribes and fictitious fees from storm victims, fraudulently representing to the victims that he could expedite and/or increase the federal relief funds they received.
The Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau obtained a four-count state grand jury indictment on July 20th, charging Ronald Golden, 43, of Norristown, Pa., with bribery in official and political matters (2nd degree), theft by deception (3rd degree), attempted theft by deception (3rd degree), and identity theft (4th degree).
Officials say Golden was hired in June 2013 as a housing adviser who processed applications for federal relief funds at a housing recovery center in Newark. The New Jersey Department of Community Affairs set up housing recovery centers, including the one in Newark, and hired contract employees for the centers through two outside employment agencies. Golden was hired through those employment agencies.
According to authorities, from May 2014 through October 2014, when he was fired for reasons unrelated to this case, Golden allegedly solicited and received a total of $5,770 in bribes and fraudulent fees from two victims, and attempted to solicit an additional bribe of $3,000 from a third victim, promising to expedite their receipt of federal aid and/or increase the amount of aid the victims received under two relief programs funded by HUD and administered in New Jersey by the DCA: the Homeowner Resettlement Program and the Reconstruction, Rehabilitation, Elevation and Mitigation Program. In reality, Golden had no authority whatsoever to approve grant awards, increase grant amounts, or expedite the application process.
In one instance, Golden allegedly falsely claimed he was a lawyer and obtained a $200 “retainer fee” from a woman, offering to represent her in a lawsuit against her insurance company over a Sandy-related claim. Golden allegedly received most of the bribes and fees in cash, but on two occasions received either a check or prepaid debit cards. Golden is charged with identity theft because he allegedly used his father’s date of birth and Social Security number on his application for the job at the housing recovery center in order to evade disclosure of certain information during a background check.
“Golden was hired to assist victims devastated by Superstorm Sandy, but we allege that he instead callously used his position to mislead victims and steal money that they needed to recover,” said Attorney General Grewal. “For an aid worker to exploit vulnerable disaster victims and prey upon their desire to rebuild their lives as quickly as possible, as alleged here, is absolutely unconscionable.”
Second-degree charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in state prison and a fine of up to $150,000, while third-degree charges carry a sentence of three to five years in prison and a fine of up to $15,000. Fourth-degree charges carry a sentence of up to 18 months in prison and a fine of up to $10,000.
The indictment is merely an accusation and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty.
Attorney General Grewal and Director Allende noted that the Division of Criminal Justice has a toll-free Corruption Tipline 1-866-TIPS-4CJ for the public to report corruption, financial crime and other illegal activities confidentially. The public can also log on to the Division webpage at www.njdcj.org to report suspected wrongdoing confidentially.
The Attorney General’s Office has an Anti-Corruption Reward Program that offers a reward of up to $25,000 for tips from the public leading to a conviction for a crime involving public corruption. Information is posted on the Attorney General’s website at: http://nj.gov/oag/corruption/reward.html.