A Passaic County hotel manager was indicted Thursday on charges he allegedly stole more than $1 million from his boss and drained a $600,000 annuity belonging to him, officials said.
Vikas Mehta, 43, of Cliffside Park. (Courtesy of the Attorney General’s Office)A state grand jury returned an indictment charging Vikas Mehta, 43, of Cliffside Park, with theft, money laundering, identity theft and forgery in a scheme that netted him $1,090,385 from the Fairbridge Inn in Wayne (formerly the Ramada Inn), the Attorney General’s Office announced in a statement.
Mehta used the stolen money to buy property in Englewood Cliffs and then sell it at a profit, authorities say.
http://liarcatchers.com/identity_theft_investigation.html
Authorities first learned of Mehta’s scheme after his boss notified Prudential in December 2015 that his $600,000 annuity had been cashed out. Authorities say Mehta used his boss’ personal information in January and February of 2013 to have the money in the account sent in the form of a check through Fed Ex, which he intercepted.
Authorities with the Office of Insurance Fraud Protection discovered Mehta had other large sums of money cashed out from IRA accounts and other insurance accounts belonging to his boss, officials said.
“Through his alleged actions, this defendant not only defrauded insurance companies, he cruelly victimized the man who paid his wages,” said Acting Insurance Fraud Prosecutor Christopher Iu. “We will vigorously prosecute anyone who seeks to enrich themselves by duping insurance companies into releasing money that belongs to hard working investors.”
Mehta faces decades in prison if he’s convicted on all counts.
Those concerned about insurance cheating and have information about a fraud can report it anonymously by calling the toll-free hotline at 1-877-55-FRAUD, or visiting www.njinsurancefraud.org.
