Trucking Company Bookkeeper Stole Millions From Job Then Gambled It Away, She Admits

TRENTON, NJ — A Howell Township woman has admitted she stole $4 million from the South Brunswick trucking company where she was a bookkeeper, then gambled the money away, the New Jersey Attorney General's Office said.

Jeanette Avellan, 62, pleaded guilty before Monmouth County Superior Court Judge Natalie S. Watson on Monday to counts of second-degree theft of movable property, third-degree failure to pay income taxes, and third-degree filing a fraudulent tax return, in exchange for a recommended sentence of four years in state prison, the state attorney general's office said.

Avellan had worked as a bookkeeper for West End Express Company in South Brunswick since 2005 and "was entrusted with the finances of the company," authorities said.

At the plea hearing she admitted that from January 2017 to January 2023, she stole approximately $4 million from the company and gambled with the money, the attorney general's office said. She also admitted that she did not report on her tax returns the money she stole, filed returns knowing that they were incorrect, and did not pay taxes that she owed, authorities said.

As part of the plea agreement, Avellan agreed to make restitution of $4.03 million to her victims and pay $559,919 to the New Jersey Division of Taxation in back taxes, penalties, and interest for tax years 2019, 2020, and 2021, the attorney general's office said.

She is scheduled to be sentenced on May 9 before State Superior Court Judge Henry P. Butehorn in Monmouth County.

"Employers need to know the people they hire to handle sensitive financial duties can be trusted to do their jobs honestly and professionally," said Theresa L. Hilton, director of the Division of Criminal Justice. "Unfortunately, in this case, the defendant’s gambling habit led her to steal from her employer and then try to hide her theft by filing fraudulent tax returns."

"This defendant admitted to systematically stealing millions of dollars from her employer while in a position of financial trust," said Attorney General Matthew Platkin. "She will now face significant punishment for her crimes. My office will always find those who would use their positions of trust to take what isn’t rightfully theirs."