12 More Charged In Lakewood Medicaid And Benefits Scam: OC Prosecutor

Twelve more Lakewood residents have been charged with defrauding Medicaid and government assistance programs, according to the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office.

The six couples were all handed complaint summonses on Thursday morning at their homes charging them with third-degree theft by deception, spokesman Al Della Fave said

The charges allege the defendants misrepresented their income, declaring amounts that were low enough to receive the program’s benefits, when in fact their income was too high to qualify, he said.

"The investigations revealed that the defendants received income from numerous sources that they failed to disclose on required program applications," Della Fave said. "As a result, they received benefits that they were not entitled to under these programs for themselves or family members."

Those charged today include:

• Eliezer and Elkie Sorotzkin, 33 and 31, respectively, of West Spruce Street for allegedly wrongfully collecting approximately $74,960 in Medicaid benefits between January 2011 and December 2013.
• Samuel and Esther Serhofer, 45 and 44, respectively, Whispering Pines Lane, for allegedly wrongfully collecting approximately $72,685 in Medicaid benefits between January 2009 and December 2013.
• Yisroel and Rachel Merkin, 37 and 34, respectively, Hermosa Drive, for allegedly wrongfully collecting approximately $70,557.51 in Medicaid, SNAP and HEAP benefits between January 2011 and December 2014.
• Jerome Menchel, 33, and Mottel Friedman, 30, Pressburg Lane, for allegedly wrongfully collecting $63,839 in Medicaid and SNAP benefits between January 2011 and July 2014.
• Tzvi and Estee Braun, 35 and 34, respectively, Ridge Avenue, for allegedly wrongfully collecting $62,746.74 in Medicaid, HEAP and CICRF benefits between January 2009 and December 2013.
• Moshe and Nechama Hirschmann, 30 and 27 respectively, Emmanuel Drive, for allegedly wrongfully collecting $53,418.39 in Medicaid and SNAP benefits between January 2011 and December 2015.

Thursday morning's charges were the latest in a series of charges file against a number of Lakewood residents. Investigations by all the participating agencies are continuing. More charges may be added as each case proceeds through the legal process.

Anyone with any information is urged to all Sgt. Mark Malinowksi at the Prosecutor's Office at 732-2929-2027.

The investigations begun by the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s Red Bank Office and the New Jersey Office of the State Comptroller – Medicaid Fraud Division, were expanded to include the U.S. Social Security Administration, New Jersey Department of the Treasury – Office of Criminal Investigation and the Ocean County Prosecutor’s Office – Economic Crimes Unit, he said. The Ocean County The prosecutor's office is prosecuting the above arrested individuals at the state level.

Image: Patch file photo