Morris Co. Woman Accused Of Lying For Superstorm Sandy Aid: NJAG

WHARTON, NJ — A Morris County woman has been accused of lying about her primary residence to get Superstorm Sandy relief funds for her beach house, New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir S. Grewal said.

Cynthia Hildebrandt, 59, of Wharton, was charged in May with second-degree theft by deception, Grewal said. She is accused of lying in applications for FEMA assistance, claiming that her Manahawkin home was her primary residence at the time of the storm. Grewal said that the Manahawkin home was just a summer house, and Wharton was Hildebrandt's primary residence.

Hildebrandt received $80,358 in various relief funds as a result of the falsified applications, Grewal said.

Since the storm, 130 people have been accused of filing falsified aid applications. Many of the accused are said to have lied about their primary residencies to qualify for aid (summer and vacation homes did not qualify for relief).

"Through this historic anti-fraud program, we have filed criminal charges against 130 defendants who allegedly were responsible for fraudulently diverting a total of nearly $9 million in relief funds after Superstorm Sandy," said Director Veronica Allende of the Division of Criminal Justice. "This collaborative state and federal initiative will undoubtedly serve as a model for other jurisdictions that face these issues in future disaster relief efforts."

Second-degree theft charges carry a sentence of five to 10 years in jail, and a fine of up to $150,000.