Assemblyman Schroeder Faces Another $300K Lawsuit

Another civil lawsuit has been filed against Assemblyman Robert Schroeder of Washington Township.

Harrington Park resident Phillip Corvelli alleges in a complaint filed in Hackensack April 30 that he made three loans to Schroeder totaling $245,000 in May and June of 2012.

Corvelli is seeking more than $339,000 for the loans, interest and his court costs.

The loans were initially due back that July, but the two agreed to extend the deadline to August, according to the complaint. The three checks from Hercules Global Logisitics that Schroeder gave to Corvelli were allegedly all returned for insufficient funds, just weeks after the assemblyman was charged with writing bad checks to a pair of investors.

No payments have been made on the loans, according to the complaint.

Corvelli's suit states that he agreed to give the loans to Schroeder because of his "standing in the community, his position as an elected official and his representations that, when made, seemed not only plausible but likely true."

The complaint alleges Schroeder committed breach of contract, fraud and unjust enrichment, among other accusations. The assemblyman also allegedly never told Corvelli he was "deeply indebted to several creditors" and used "various stalling tactics."

Neither Schroeder nor Corvelli could immediately be reached for comment.

Schroeder has been sued numerous times over the past year and judgments against him have totaled more than $13 million. Three creditors filed to force in into bankruptcy in March.

The assemblyman is also facing criminal charges that he allegedly stole $1.8 million from investors and wrote bad checks for loan payments totaling more than $3.4 million. A grand jury indicted Schroeder in December and he was offered a plea deal in March which would require him to give up his public office.

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